The Press Herald reports again on the child welfare caseloads here in Maine (“Oppressive caseloads, long hours still plague state’s staff,” Jan. 26, Page A1). For decades, we have struggled to protect children from caretakers who fail to do so. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t wish to improve our capacity to protect children.

Last Tuesday’s New York Times reports on research that suggests children, infants in particular, have a “profound” benefit from the child tax credit expansion. That program went out of existence in December. We don’t know precisely how, but Columbia University neuroscientists, using electroencephalograms, assure us that the children’s positive brain development is happening because their families are getting the stipend.

Both Sen. Joe Manchin, of West Virginia, and Sen. Susan Collins voted against the tax credit program, and neither of them knows if that will make it harder to protect children. The point is that politicians should probably not be the ones deciding what we should do to help protect children at risk. Child protection is very complicated, and none of us knows for sure just what will help protect children. My guess is that as their caretakers feel better about themselves, they are more likely to better protect their children, and there is probably no better way for them to do that than to give them an extra $300 per month.

That would be costly on a national basis, but here in Maine it might be possible to test without excessive cost. It is certainly worth trying.

James Tierney
Brownfield

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