New Florida Bill Seeks to let Parents Use Election Campaign Donations to Fund Child Care

If passed, the new policy might help lower the age of America’s increasingly older politicians.

The Florida Capitol in Tallahassee, photographed on March 14, 2023, houses the offices of government departments and state lawmakers, and holds the two domed chambers of the state legislature, the meeting places of the state House of Representatives and the state Senate. Nanette Holt/The Epoch Times

For parents, participating in Florida politics could become easier than ever if a new bill is passed.

“There are some barriers to younger parents entering an elected office,” Democratic Florida state Rep. Kelly Skidmore told The Epoch Times. “And one of those barriers is the cost of child care.”

For politicians, the balance between family obligations and political campaigns can be difficult to navigate, she said.

“Sometimes, you’re going to need to go to an event,” Ms. Skidmore said. “And you’re going to need to have child care so that you can get to that event, so that you can talk to people and voters in your district about why they should elect you.”

She sponsored the new bill, House Bill 687, introduced on Jan. 9, to help address issues like these, she said. Her bill, also sponsored by Democrat Florida state Sen. Lori Berman, allows politicians to use campaign funds for child care expenses.

The bill’s wording limits the use of these funds only to cover child care while the candidate engages in campaign activities. For instance, if a campaigning parent has to pay for child care while he or she makes a speech, it would be a campaign expense, she said.

The push to make it easier for younger candidates to enter politics comes at a time when the age of the average politician has risen dramatically.

Research by the Cultural Currents Institute, a political consulting and marketing agency, found the average governor is around 60 years old, the average congressman is 57 years old, and the average senator is over 63 years old. But the average American is just under 39 years old.

However, the group didn’t collect statistics for the age of state-level legislative politicians.

Allowing parents to use campaign money for child care frees them to get into politics at younger ages.

“This is for people who need to use this, as an opportunity for them to participate in this little-D democratic process,” Ms. Skidmore said. “It is more difficult for younger people to access the elective process. And if there’s an opportunity for us to make it that little bit easier, we should be looking at those.”

Legislature That Represents Everyone

Older people tend to be retired, which gives them more time for political campaigning, Ms. Skidmore said. Politics also tends to be a game for the independently wealthy, she said. But parents also have legitimate reasons to be involved in government, she said.

The bill isn’t a revolutionary idea, she said. In fact, 29 other states and federal campaign rules allow politicians to pay for child care with campaign funds.

“I think Florida candidates should be able to take advantage of it as well,” Ms. Skidmore said.

Florida state Rep. Kelly Skidmore. Courtesy of Kelly Skidmore

In 2022, only 5.3 percent of state legislators were mothers with children under the age of 18, according to the Vote Mama Foundation, an activist group dedicated to electing parents. Meanwhile, just under 18 percent of American women are mothers, the group found.

The group didn’t include statistics on men with children under 18 in the legislature.

The non-controversial nature of this bill gives it bipartisan support in Florida, Ms. Skidmore said. So far, it has faced little opposition, she added.

Already, at least one Republican candidate is considering co-sponsoring the bill, she said. However, she wanted to avoid putting her fellow representative on the spot by mentioning their name.

Families in Florida’s Legislature

Ms. Skidmore is a mother of one, but her daughter is now an adult, she said. However, for many Florida politicians, the chance to count child care as a campaign expense will make it easier to get politically involved, she said.

One prominent Florida politician with young children is Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has three children under the age of 10.

“Now is a good time to have the conversation about whether or not younger parents should have the same access to running for office as everyone else,” Ms. Skidmore said.

Mr. DeSantis has emphasized Florida’s focus on legislation that helps parents, including major education and parental rights bills.

Ms. Skidmore said someone could look at this bill as another way Florida’s government puts parents first.

Offshore power race boats make the turn in the harbor during the first of three days of racing at the Key West World Offshore Championship in Key West, Fla., on Nov. 7, 2007. Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau via Getty Images

“You could look at it that way,” she said. “But it is about access. That’s all it’s about.”

With more parents in office, Florida will better represent its people, Ms. Skidmore said.

“I think that any elected body should have diverse perspectives,” she said. “And those perspectives can change by gender, they can change by age, they can change by geography.”