MIDLAND, Texas — There are 14 state propositions on the ballot for this November election. One of those props deals with creating an exemption option on paying property taxes for child-care facilities, and it could help local child-care facilities simply stay open.
For the little ones in daycare classrooms, this is a big one at the ballot box.
“Now is more important than ever because our daycares are hurting and they’re closing," said Latoya Mayberry, an owner of two childcare facilities and director of Toya's Precious Jewels Academy. "A lot of people can’t keep staff.”
That reality for childcare facilities has been a recent development.
“When COVID first hit, they realized that childcare was the backbone of America, so they gave us a lot of funds – it was a childcare relief fund," Mayberry said. "Well, that fund has now ran out, and so a lot of daycares are closing as we see around our community.”
Closing in a community that is experiencing growth.
“Here in Midland, we average about 200 babies per month, and so they’re realizing that it’s a crisis," Mayberry said. "And even here in Midland, our median age is three. So, it’s really hitting hard that we need the daycare. That’s not the school age, it’s daycare.”
At Toya’s Precious Jewels Academy, Mayberry said the passage of Prop 2 could impact multiple groups.
“Right now, a lot of people are saying childcare is expensive, but the reality is the annual salary for a childcare worker is about $20,000," Mayberry said. "So, we don’t get to pay our staff enough, but it’s because of all the other things we have to pay. So, what we do is we’re tuition-based – we have to charge our families more. So, any kind of tax break, I think we need to create a lot more of these, but any kind of tax breaks ultimately effects our parents because we funnel the money back to our employees – or that’s what I would plan to do with the money.”
Getting this childcare prop on the ballot took statewide analysis and efforts.
“It’s a lot of people just advocating for childcare and saying, ‘If they all go out of business, where are our children going to go?’," Mayberry said. "And so, that’s basically how this got on the ballot is just [a] bunch of those coalitions from all over basically giving that information and them taking it up there.”
With Election Day on Nov. 7, the future of childcare is a big part of it.
“I think a lot of people don’t realize that it’s a matter of keeping some daycare centers open because they just need an extra $5,000, $6,000, and that’s it right there," Mayberry said.
Mayberry mentioned that this property tax break would save them about $8,000 to $10,000 a year. She noted that no matter what happens on Election Day, the fight for childcare support is moving in the right direction with plenty of work still to be done.