Supporting working parents is crucial to Kentucky’s future, Rep. Heavrin says

As chair of the House Families and Children Committee, Rep. Samara Heavrin is focused on removing barriers to child care for working Kentucky families during the 2024 General Assembly.

In an interview with The Bottom Line, Rep. Heavrin discussed two pieces of legislation she is sponsoring: House Bill 179, legislation to permit voluntary paid family leave insurance in Kentucky, and House Bill 561, which would create the Certified Child Care Community Designation Program.

House Bill 179 would help Kentucky employers who would like to offer an additional benefit to their employees by amending state law to allow voluntary paid family leave to be offered as an insurance product. Rep. Heavrin mentioned that several states are taking similar approaches to paid family leave to help employers increase recruitment and retention.

“To me, this is a great way to support working families and really to promote motherhood and fatherhood in the state, too. Research shows that the more time parents can spend time with their baby in the beginning, it makes a huge difference in the outcome of their life,” Rep. Heavrin said.

She stressed the bill is not a mandate on businesses and instead just opens up the insurance market for employers to be able to offer this additional benefit to their employees and keep Kentucky competitive as at least 15 other states have adopted similar legislation.

Meanwhile, House Bill 561, The Certified Child Care Community Designation Program, aims to increase the number of child care and early childhood education services across Kentucky by providing support for local governments and communities to identify and address impediments, such as zoning ordinances. Rep. Heavrin said the biggest barrier to growing the workforce is the lack of child care centers, especially in rural areas of the Commonwealth.

“[This bill] encourages local cities and counties to look at their zoning ordinances for child care communities. We’re going to partner with the area development districts and the Kentucky Economic Development Cabinet to get this to work…We have a lot of child care deserts, so whether it’s facilities or in-home child care, we hope that [this bill] will be able to bring more child care to communities,” she said.

Heavrin also touched on the importance of continuing funding for the Employee Child Care Assistance Partnership, a program created by legislation she championed during the 2022 General Assembly, as lawmakers continue work to craft the state’s next two-year budget.  

Watch the full interview with Rep. Heavrin below to hear more about the bills, her leadership role on the committee and more: