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Date: 5/12/2021
CHICOPEE – In a an effort to call attention to President Joe Biden’s American Families Plan, Sen. Edward Markey visited the daycare center of the Valley Opportunity Council (VOC) on May 7.
Mayor John Vieau, state Sen. Eric Lesser, City Councilor Robert Zygarowski and Steve Huntley, the executive director of the VOC, joined the senator.
According to information supplied by Markey’s office, “The American Families Plan will invest $225 billion in direct support to families to ensure that low- and middle-income families spend no more than seven percent of their income on child care, and that the child care they access is of high-quality. The plan will save the average family $14,800 per year on child-care expenses and allow roughly one million parents, primarily mothers, to enter the labor force.”
Huntley explained that pandemic assistance from the federal government was important to the reopening of the center, while Vieau told Markey how important the funding through the CARES Act last year was to the city.
“We worked very hard to get the resources you need,” Markey replied.
Markey asked Vieau about city projects that could be addressed if the proposed American Recovery Act is passed. Vieau offered several projects including the ongoing funding of the renovations to City Hall; the replacement of the District 3 fire station downtown; the further implementation of the city’s residential broadband plan; and the ongoing federally-mandated sewer separation.
Markey responded, “Mr. Mayor, we want to be as helpful as we can be.”
The senator referred to the stress so many families have faced during the pandemic and spoke of the proposed American Families Plan, which according to a White House statement, “is an investment in our children and our families – helping families cover the basic expenses that so many struggle with now, lowering health insurance premiums, and continuing the American Rescue Plan’s historic reductions in child poverty.”
In discussion about improving the nation’s infrastructure, Markey explained members of Congress and Biden believe “families are part of the infrastructure of this country.”
The White House description of the legislation, continued, “In all, the American Families Plan includes $1.8 trillion in investments and tax credits for American families and children over ten years. It consists of about $1 trillion in investments and $800 billion in tax cuts for American families and workers. Alongside the American Families Plan, the President will be proposing a set of measures to make sure that the wealthiest Americans pay their share in taxes, while ensuring that no one making $400,000 per year or less will see their taxes go up. When combined with President Biden’s American Jobs Plan, this legislation will be fully paid for over 15 years, and will reduce deficits over the long term.”
Markey said of the various pieces of legislation now being considered is important in American history.
“This is a big moment. It’s an FDR moment,” he said referring to the legislation that came part of the Roosevelt administration to address the problems created by the Great Depression in the 1930s.