Table of Contents:

1) Division A — Childcare Subsidies.

2) Division B — The Childcare Advance.

3) Division C — Tri-Share Childcare Program.

4) Division D — At-Home Infant Care Program.

5) Division E — Supporting Military Families.

6) Division F — Reporting.

a) Childcare Subsidies

i) The DEPARTMENT shall develop a phased implementation plan for childcare subsidies under [existing state program] with benchmarks for limiting co-payments, by 2030, to no more than 7% of a family’s income. The implementation plan must include at least the following:

1) A phased approach with benchmarks, that gradually increases eligibility based on income until 2030 and considers eligibility opportunities for families earning up to 250% of the median family income in the State;

2) A graduated system of co-payments to eliminate the benefit cliff effect for families and to limit the amount a family pays for childcare;

3) Expanded access to a childcare subsidy by developing a model to enable the DEPARTMENT to provide contracted slots to programs that service a family using the childcare subsidy; and

4) A plan, a budget, revenue recommendations and a timeline to achieve the goals of this section.

ii) Streamlined Eligibility for Childcare Subsidies

1) Any family that qualifies for public assistance through Medicaid or the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children shall be deemed to categorically satisfy income eligibility requirements to receive assistance through the [existing state childcare subsidy program]. 

2) The DEPARTMENT shall determine eligibility for the [existing state childcare subsidy program] within 30 days of receiving an application. The DEPARTMENT shall provide retroactive reimbursement to a childcare program that provided tuition assistance to an applicant during the application review period, regardless of final eligibility determination. The DEPARTMENT shall reimburse a provider of childcare services provided under this chapter within 15 days.

(a) Applicants will be presumed to be eligible for subsidies while application is processed.

3) The DEPARTMENT shall establish an [automatic enrollment/express lane eligibility program] to enroll children in the [existing state childcare subsidy program] based on eligibility findings for Medicaid or the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. [The Department of Health] shall include a checkbox or similar mechanism on pediatric and relevant OBGYN intake materials to provide consent to be contacted by DEPARTMENT about subsidized childcare. 

b) The Childcare Advance

i) The [State] tax code is hereby amended to establish the Childcare Advance.

1) Any resident taxpayer who, in a taxable year, incurs employment-related expenses for childcare for a dependent under age five, may defer payment of their tax liability for that taxable year under this article by the amount of those expenses but not to exceed two thousand dollars.

2) Any taxpayer who defers tax liability under subdivision (1) of this section shall be liable: (i) once the taxpayer is no longer taking the deferral, for the full amount previously deferred divided into equal payments over ten years, except that (ii) in any future years the taxpayer takes the deferral, that taxpayer is liable only for one-tenth of each deferral taken five or more years prior until each of those deferrals is repaid. At no point shall the taxpayer be liable for amounts previously repaid. Repayment shall be made without interest.

3) At the end of every tax year, the Tax Department shall notify each taxpayer who has deferred tax liability under subdivision (1) of this section of the total amount of their deferred liability, the tax year in which repayment will begin, and an estimate of the amount for which the taxpayer will be liable each year once the eligibility expires.

4) Nothing in this section shall prevent a taxpayer from repaying accumulated liability earlier than the schedule set forth in subdivision (2) of this section, or taking less than the total amount allowable under subdivision (1) of this section in any given tax year. 

5) Any taxpayer that moves to a jurisdiction that does not maintain tax reciprocity with the state, shall be liable for the entire amount deferred on the tax filing for the tax year in which such change of residence occurs, but subject to approval of the DEPARTMENT shall be directed to repay that liability through a payment plan approved by the DEPARTMENT.

6) The DEPARTMENT shall provide for the repayment of deferrals under this section to be made through payroll withholding, and shall address repayment in cases of divorce.

c) Tri-Share Childcare Program

i) The DEPARTMENT shall establish a Tri-Share Childcare program, which creates a public/private partnership to share the cost of childcare between employers, eligible employees, and the State to:

1) Make high-quality childcare affordable and accessible for working families.

2) Help employers retain and attract employees.

3) Help stabilize childcare providers across the State.

ii) [$XX] in non-recurring funds for each year of the [YEAR-YEAR] fiscal biennium shall be used to provide the State portion of funding for the Tri-Share Childcare program established by this section. The State’s contribution shall be equal to the amount contributed by the employer and eligible employee up to the amount permitted to be expended by the state under the state childcare subsidy guidelines [outlined in section (a)(i)]. Funds provided under this section shall be divided evenly in each fiscal year among the regional facilitator hubs, as described in subsection (iii) of this section, selected to participate in the program. Any unexpended funds shall revert to the General Fund.

iii) The DEPARTMENT shall select up to [three] local partnerships to serve as regional facilitator hubs to implement and administer the program and act as regional intermediaries between employers, families, childcare providers, and the State. The DEPARTMENT shall select local partnerships to participate in the program from geographically diverse areas across the State.

iv) The local partnerships selected to serve as regional facilitator hubs shall establish and determine program eligibility. For purposes of this program, an employee is eligible to participate if the employee (i) is employed by a participating employer, and (ii) is not otherwise receiving subsidized childcare in this State. An eligible employee may reside outside of the designated region for the respective facilitator hub. Additionally, the regional facilitator hubs shall develop and implement other criteria for the childcare program, including, but not limited to, each of the following:

1) Ensuring payment for the cost of childcare is divided equally between an employer, an eligible employee, and the State, up to a benefit equal to the maximum amount of benefits provided under [existing state childcare subsidy program].

2) Recruiting participating employers and licensed childcare providers.

3) Ensuring participating employers agree to (i) identify and recruit eligible employees, (ii) provide the employer portion of each participating employee’s childcare costs, and (iii) maintain communication with the regional facilitator hub regarding each eligible employee’s continued employment and eligibility.

4) Verifying that participating childcare providers meet state licensure requirements.

5) Final determinations regarding a referred employee’s eligibility.

6) Coordinating and ensuring  payments between employers, employees,  and licensed childcare providers.

v) For purposes of this section, childcare includes licensed part-time and full-time care, before and after school care, and summer day camps.

vi) A regional facilitator hub may use up to nine percent (9%) of its allocation for administrative costs.

vii) Within two years of the commencement of the Tri-Share Childcare program, the DEPARTMENT shall submit a report to the legislature, which shall include, at a minimum, each of the following:

1) The number of children served, by age and county.

2) Total program costs, including any administrative costs.

3) The amount of funds needed for program expansion, if recommended. 

4) The list of employers participating in the program.

5) Any other relevant information or recommendations deemed appropriate.

d) At-Home Infant Care Program

i) It is the goal of the state to offer an at-home infant care program for families in which a parent provides full-time childcare for the family’s infant under 2 years of age, administered through the [existing state childcare subsidy program]  by the DEPARTMENT. 

ii) The family may receive a payment in lieu of childcare assistance if the family meets the following eligibility requirements:

1) The family has not previously received a total of 24 months of at-home infant care assistance under this section 

2) The at-home infant care assistance is only received up to 24 months,  once per child 

3) A parent must be 18 years of age or older or, if under 18 years of age, have attained an equivalency of completion of secondary education, or a high school diploma.

(a) A parent who is under 18 years of age and attending high school or a program for equivalency of completion of secondary education may receive benefits for months outside of the regular school year.

4) A parent must meet any additional requirements as provided in administrative rules.

5) Family members may participate in education and work activities as long as a parent provides care full-time for the infant.

iii) The Department shall expend funds under the At-Home Infant Care Program pursuant to the following rates of assistance:

1) Clients eligible for [existing state childcare subsidy program] shall receive a benefit equal to the maximum amount of benefits the parent would be eligible to receive under that program, otherwise the benefit shall be equal to [$3,600 per year, adjusted annually for inflation]. 

iv) [Payments received under this program shall not be subject to state income tax.]

v) Payments received under this program shall be excluded from an applicant’s income to qualify and apply for other assistance programs in the state. 

vi) The program will be funded if a specific appropriation is added to the general appropriations act or by budget amendment if funds become available from federal or private sources.

vii) The Department shall create outreach materials and develop an outreach plan to provide materials to all pediatric and prenatal providers in the state.

viii) A participating family shall report income and other family changes as specified by rule. 

ix) IF APPLICABLE: The Department shall work with the [Department of Social Services] to establish processes for automatic enrollment in the state’s universal home visiting program upon enrollment in the at-home infant care program. 

1) The Department shall include a checkbox or similar mechanism on the paperwork for enrollment in the at-home infant care program for parents and guardians to [provide their consent to enroll in OR opt-out of enrollment in] a home visiting program. 

x) Definitions 

1) “Universal home visiting program” as defined in this section means an evidence-based home visiting model that is proven to improve child health and be cost effective, as measured by the federal Home Visiting Evidence of Effectiveness (HomVEE) program.

2) “Parent” as defined in this section means a birth parent, a stepparent, a foster parent, an adoptive parent, or a guardian who is acting in loco parentis.

e) Supporting Military Families

i) DEPARTMENT is hereby directed to increase the availability of childcare options and subsidies for military families, including through coordination with the Department of Defense to allow or expand participation in the Military Childcare in Your Neighborhood-PLUS program (MCCYN-PLUS), or other federal Department of Defense programs.

ii) Any spouse of an active duty or reserve member of the Armed Forces of the United States or a member of the STATE National Guard who has obtained a valid out-of-state [teaching/childcare] license, with full credentials and without deficiencies, that is in force at the time the application for a STATE license is received by the DEPARTMENT, and has submitted to a criminal history record background check within the past year, may be eligible to receive licensure by reciprocity. Each such individual shall establish a file in the DEPARTMENT by submitting a complete application packet, which shall include official student transcripts and an official copy of the military permanent assignment orders of the individual’s spouse. No service requirements or licensing assessments shall be required for any such individual. The DEPARTMENT shall determine and communicate such individual’s eligibility for licensure by reciprocity within 15 business days of receipt of the complete application packet.

f) Reports

i) No later than [year end] and annually thereafter, the DEPARTMENT shall submit a report to the committees of the Legislature having jurisdiction over childcare matters that includes a review of implementation progress, utilization of programs, and recommendations for additional legislative action if needed.

g) [State] has a compelling interest in protecting privacy and the protection of personal information. In administering this Act, state and local agencies, businesses, and any other entity, shall only request data necessary to administer this Act and retain it only as required to administer and achieve the purposes of the Act. Any personal information or data collected or obtained in the course of administering this Act shall be shared only in a manner that has been deidentified and aggregated to the greatest extent allowable while still in compliance with federal eligibility requirements and every allowable effort shall be made to revoke access to such data should programs be eliminated or should there be an ineligibility determination. Personal information or data collected or obtained in the course of administering this Act shall not be otherwise disclosed without the informed consent of the individual, a warrant signed by a [state] judge or federal judge, lawful court order administered within [state] or a lawful federal court order, or subpoena administered within [state] or federal subpoena, or unless otherwise required by federal or state statute. Personal information or data may be considered deidentified if it cannot reasonably be used to infer information about, or otherwise be linked to, a particular individual or household.

h) The provisions of this act are severable. If any provision of this act or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.