SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 881
102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR RAZER.
3663S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To amend chapter 210, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to child care.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 210, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1
one new section, to b e known as section 210.054, to read as 2
follows:3
210.054. 1. Subject to appropriation, the office of 1
childhood within the department of elementary and secondary 2
education, in collaboration with the department of economic 3
development, shall design , implement, and administer a pilot 4
program to facilitate access to child care for working 5
families, which shall include a cost -sharing child care 6
subsidy program designed to divide the cost of child care 7
equally by participating employers, employees, and the state. 8
2. The pilot project shall use regional early child 9
care community leaders designated by the office to 10
coordinate with employers and child care providers to 11
provide for child care placement for employees of partnering 12
employers. The pilot program shall be established in at 13
least one predominately rural region and one predominately 14
urban region of the state. 15
3. Participating child care providers shall be 16
qualified to provide child care services pursuant to section 17
210.1080 and shall enter into an agreement with the office 18
to provide child care services to employees participating in 19 SB 881 2
the program. Such agreement shall specify the cost of child 20
care services for the employee for the duration of the 21
contract period, as well as the respective employer, 22
employee, and state shares of the costs; provided that such 23
shares are equal parts of the cost of the child care. 24
4. In order to qualify for the program, employees 25
shall work in Missouri for a participating employer an d 26
shall have an income between greater than two hundred 27
percent but less than or equal to three hundred twenty -five 28
percent of the federal poverty level for the applicable 29
family size. 30
5. In addition to appropriations from the general 31
assembly, the office shall apply for available grants and 32
shall be able to accept other gifts, grants, bequests, and 33
donations to develop and implement the program established 34
pursuant to this section. 35
6. The office shall provide a report to the governor 36
and general assembly by December thirty -first each year 37
detailing the effectiveness of the pilot program in 38
increasing access to child care for Missouri employees and 39
encouraging recruitment and retention of employees of 40
participating employers. 41
7. The office shall promulgate rules and regulations 42
to implement the provisions of this section, including, but 43
not limited to, standardized agreements between employers, 44
employees, and the state for the payment of child care 45
services under this sectio n; eligibility verification 46
processes for employees; and procedures for issuing the 47
state share of an employee's child care costs as a subsidy 48
to the provider. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that 49
term is defined in section 536.010, that is created under 50
the authority delegated in this section shall become 51 SB 881 3
effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of 52
the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 53
536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and 54
if any of the powers vested with the general assembly 55
pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay the effective 56
date, or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently 57
held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking 58
authority and any rule proposed or adopted af ter August 28, 59
2024, shall be invalid and void. 60
8. Pursuant to section 23.253 of the Missouri Sunset 61
Act: 62
(1) The program authorized pursuant to this section 63
shall automatically sunset six years after August 28, 2024, 64
unless reauthorized by an act of the general assembly; and 65
(2) If such program is reauthorized, the program 66
authorized pursuant to this section shall automatically 67
sunset twelve years after the effective date of the 68
reauthorization; and 69
(3) This section shall ter minate on September first of 70
the calendar year immediately following the calendar year in 71
which the program authorized pursuant to this section is 72
sunset. 73