What's happening
This bill limits child care subsidy co-payments to no more than 10% of household income and eliminates them for low-income families.
Why it matters
Caps child care costs. for all families receiving subsidies, ensuring that no family pays more than 10% of their household income, which may make quality child care more affordable for working and middle-class families.
Eliminates co-payments entirely. for families at or below the state income standard, directly reducing financial barriers for the lowest-income families and potentially increasing access to child care and parents' ability to work or attend school.
Creates a standardized approach. statewide for assessing child care costs, replacing local or variable co-payment practices with a clear limit, which could reduce confusion, administrative burden, and inequities in how subsidies are applied.
May broaden eligibility and participation. in the child care subsidy program by making it more financially accessible, which can improve child development outcomes and help stabilize family economic situations.
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Who cares
Families at or below the state income standard
The bill would eliminate co-payments for their subsidized child care.
Other families receiving child care assistance
The bill would cap their co-payments at 10 percent of household income.
Agencies administering child care assistance
They would have to apply the co-payment exemption and cap within the existing sliding-fee system.
Headline styles
Limit Child Care Co-Pays
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to children and families
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to children and families
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
6124
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 16, 2019
Introduced by Sen. MONTGOMERY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to limiting co-payments for child care subsidies
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 6 of section 410-x of the social services law, as added by section 52 of part B of chapter 436 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
6. Pursuant to department regulations, child care assistance shall be provided on a sliding fee basis based upon the family's ability to pay. No co-payment shall be assessed to a family whose income is at or below the state income standard as defined in subdivision two of section four hundred ten-w of this title. Co-payments shall not exceed ten percent of the household income.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11894-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to limiting co-pay- ments for child care subsidies
Purpose
This bill eliminates co-payments for any family receiving child care assistance whose income is at or below the state income standard. This bill also caps the amount of co-payment a person can be held responsible for at ten percent of their household income.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 amends subdivision 6 of section 410-x of the social services law, by eliminating co-payments for those who receive child care assist- ance and have incomes at or below the state income standard, as well as capping such co-payments at ten percent of the household income.
Existing law
Currently the co-payment of a family receiving child care assistance is set by subtracting the poverty level for the household size from their income, and then choosing a multiplier between 10 and 35 percent (deter- mined by the locality) to apply against the balance.
Justification
Under the current system of co-payments, there are families with incomes below the state income standard paying for child care that they cannot afford. Further, depending on the county a family lives in, they may be paying a significantly higher co-payment than the same size family in an area in which the cost of living is much less. For example, a family of three in Yonkers at 200% of poverty, in a county where the multiplier is 33%, has a co-payment of $4,726, and will pay $2,000 a year more than a family of the same size and income level as a family in New York: City. This is unfair. A cap of ten percent of the household income assures equitable treatment across the state.
Legislative history
2007-2008: S.3161 - Died in Committee 2006-2005: S.1298 - Died in Committee 2004-2003: S.5710 - Died in Committee
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect the first of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.