The Anne Arundel County delegation to the General Assembly voted for a bill Friday that would exempt personal property used in homes that provide family childcare from taxation.
House Bill 1343, would allow Anne Arundel County to grant a property tax credit for space that is used to run a daycare. The goal is to create additional family childcare options in the county and help meet the ever-growing demand for affordable childcare.
The bill does not yet have a total cost estimate. Qualified licensed childcare facilities would receive a maximum credit of $10,000 annually.
Family childcare providers use their residences to provide day care. Maryland limits the number of children in a family childcare home to eight, with no more than two below the age of 2.
“As we all know, we are in the middle of a childcare crisis in Maryland,” Del. Dana Jones, a Democrat representing District 30A and president of Women Legislators of Maryland, said. “I would say it’s a straightforward bill.”
The bill, sponsored by Jones, and Dels. Heather Bagnall and Dylan Behler, comes after a study by Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman examined factors fueling childcare shortages in Maryland, including high prices and a decline in the number of day care facilities.
There were 2,631 licensed childcare centers and 4,118 registered family childcare facilities in Maryland as of October 2024, according to Lierman’s study.
“At the end of the day, this is a small business bill,” Jones said. “It would not only provide more family day care centers in Anne Arundel County and get more parents back to work, but it would also help small businesses and those family-owned childcare centers.”
Montgomery, Frederick, Howard and Harford Counties all have similar exemptions in place, according to Jones. Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman and the Women Legislators of Maryland support the bill.
The bill was passed by the delegation by a vote of 16-0 and will be heard by the Ways and Means Committee in the near future.
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