Hawaiʻi’s highest-in-the-nation cost of living puts an incredible strain on working parents. The average cost of child care in Hawaiʻi is $13,731 per year for an infant and $8,937 per year for a 4-year-old. Meanwhile, the median income for a full-time worker in Hawaiʻi is $58,626—not nearly enough for the average household with kids to comfortably pay its bills.

After factoring in the median rent for a family home of $2,900 per month ($34,800 per year), two full-time workers who are both earning Hawaiʻi’s median income would still spend 41 percent of their combined income on childcare and housing alone—not to mention additional costs that come with transportation, healthcare and unexpected emergencies.

This crisis of affordability for working families is reflected in the data on child poverty. More than 36,500 children—12.6 percent of all children in Hawaiʻi—live beneath the poverty line. Thousands more are at risk of falling into poverty without government intervention.

Given Hawaiʻi’s rising cost of living and the corresponding increase in child poverty, lawmakers should seize the opportunity this legislative session to establish a state-level Child Tax Credit (CTC)—or “Keiki Credit”—to provide necessary tax relief for low- to middle-income families with children.