Families and Children

As a mom, I know that parents have an increasingly difficult job in today’s world. The economic pressures, the time demands, and the many outside influences that affect even the youngest children—all of these make this an especially challenging time for American families.
All parents want to protect their children and make sure they have the best possible chance to grow up and succeed in life. Too many Minnesota families are struggling to make ends meet, and an ever-increasing number of people find themselves simultaneously bearing the responsibility of caring for their aging parents while also raising their own children.
Ultimately, our national well-being—our economic prosperity and our quality of life—depends on the strength of our families. We must support strong families and make sure parents have the tools they need to protect their children and do what’s best for them.
I will continue to work to make sure that our children grow up in healthy and safe environments, and that all of our families have the resources they need to deal successfully with today's challenges.
As Minnesota’s U.S. senator, I will continue to focus on these priorities:
As Minnesota’s U.S. senator, I’ve been fighting to support families and children:
Ensuring workers have access to child care.Too often, people are faced with a situation where there simply is no child care option available. In fact, over half of Americans live in a child care desert. I cosponsored theChild Care for Working Families Act, which would expand access to high-quality preschool and child care, improve training and resources for early childhood teachers and caregivers, and prioritize the challenges experienced by parents who work non-traditional hours, children with disabilities, and rural areas. I also introduced the bipartisanChild Care Workforce and Facilities Actto address shortages of affordable, quality child care options in our state by supporting programs to expand the child care workforce. The legislation would also support building, renovating, and expanding child care facilities to ensure children have safe and healthy environments to learn and play in.I fought for Minnesota to receive Race to the Top – Early Learning Challenge grant, which provided $45 million to improve the quality of early learning and development programs serving high-need children across our state. I also supported theStrong Start for America’s Children Act, which expands and improves early learning opportunities for children from birth to age five, and theHead Start for School Readiness Act, which was signed into law in 2007 to ensure that children are prepared when they enter school. In 2024, we increased funding for Head Start and the Child Care and Development Block Grant programs, and I will continue to fight against President Trump’s proposed cuts to these programs. When Minnesota Head Start programs were unable to access federal resources in early 2025, I called on the Trump administration to restore their funding and the freeze was ultimately lifted.
Extending paid sick, family, and medical leave.Minnesota is a leader in providing paid sick leave, paid medical leave, and other policies that support working families. I am working to pass these bills on the national level. I was proud to support thePregnant Workers Fairness Act, which went into effect in June 2023 and protects the rights of pregnant workers, and theFederal Employee Paid Leave Act, which provides federal workers 12 weeks of paid parental leave and was included in legislation signed into law in December 2019. I cosponsor theHealthy Families Actled by Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont to provide up to 7 days of annual paid sick leave and theFamily and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Actled by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York to provide up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave.