OLD ORCHARD BEACH, Maine — April Tardiff knows first-hand the joy and frustration that comes with being a parent.
"It's amazing and tiring all at the same time," she said.
Tardiff is a stay-at-home mom for her son, Grayson—not by choice, but because she said she could not find affordable child care.
"That was the case for me when I was entering into my six weeks of maternity leave. At the end of it, I could not find it," Tardiff said.
It is a problem facing parents statewide. A report released last year by ReadyNation, a nonprofit, found a lack of reliable care for working parents of young children could cost the state $403 million dollars a year.
That's why Tardiff joined parents from across in the country in Washington, D.C., this week with the organization Zero to Three for the annual Strolling Thunder movement.
They are calling on lawmakers to do more to advocate for children, including sending more federal child care funding to states like Maine.
"It's something that we really need some funding for," Tardiff said. "We need federal funding ... so that these families are supported."
Tardiff met members of Maine's congressional delegation, including Sen. Susan Collins and Rep. Chellie Pingree, as well as representatives with Sen. Angus King's office.
"Child care is essential to our economy," King told NEWS CENTER Maine.
King said child care affordability is one of the top issues his office receives calls and messages about.
Earlier this year, he and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire introduced legislation to increase and improve tax incentives to help employers provide child care benefits to their employees. King said he hopes it can benefit business big and small.
"It's a partnership, if you will, between the businesses and the federal government in the form of a tax incentive. But it's not the whole deal," he said. "The companies have to put up basically three-quarters of this money for the child care."
Congress recently approved a $1 billion increase for child care programs nationwide in a budget deal last month.
Pingree said it's only the start of what Democrats and the Biden Administration are calling for.
"The administration is asking for much more money in the child care assistance programs," she said. "I'm on the Appropriations Committee, so we're going to really fight hard for that because it really comes down to the funding, and making sure this funding gets back to the states and is there for the people who need it."
People like Tardiff, who wants others like her to experience the joys of parenting without the pressure and fear.
"I want for other moms like me to have the peace of mind that they're they don't have to choose between less income for their family and a safe place for their kids to go," she said.