Whereas mothers are an essential part of the American workforce and the United States economy; Whereas 2,500,000 women left the workforce in the first year of the COVID–19 pandemic, compared with 1,800,000 men, largely as a result of the burdens of childcare, work, and remote learning; Whereas maternal employment fell by 15.7 percent as a result of the COVID–19 pandemic, compared to paternal employment which fell by 9.6 percent in the same time period; Whereas at least 4 out of every 10 women report having experienced gender discrimination at work; Whereas, on average, women are paid 77 cents for every dollar paid to men; Whereas Black women, Latinas, Native women, and many communities of Asian-American Pacific-Islander women experience higher poverty rates and higher wage gaps compared to White, non-Hispanic men; Whereas women occupy close to two-thirds of jobs that pay the Federal minimum wage or just a few dollars above it; Whereas even 1 percent of mothers leaving the workforce would result in an estimated $8,700,000,000 economic fallout for families; Whereas strong investments in childcare are essential for women’s full employment, and United States gross domestic product would increase by 10 to 15 basis points with such investments; Whereas half of families in the United States with children under the age of 18 have a mother who contributes at least 40 percent of household earnings; Whereas mothers of color play a vital role in the financial stability of their families with 79 percent of Black mothers, 64 percent of Native American mothers, 49 percent of Latina mothers, and 43 percent of Asian-American and Pacific-Islander mothers serving as breadwinners; Whereas, in addition to the economic security that mothers provide for their families, mothers are more than 3 times as likely as fathers to be responsible for most of the housework and caregiving in their households