Rhode Island 2023 Regular Session

Rhode Island House Bill H6122 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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5	5	2023 -- H 6122
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7	7	LC002112
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9	9	S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND
10	10	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
11	11	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023
12	12	____________
13	13
14	14	A N A C T
15	15	RELATING TO HUMAN SE RVICES -- RHODE ISLAND CHILD CARE FOR ALL ACT
16	16	Introduced By: Representatives Cruz, Boylan, Cotter, Spears, Kislak, Kazarian,
17	17	Speakman, Potter, Stewart, and J. Lombardi
18	18	Date Introduced: March 03, 2023
19	19	Referred To: House Finance
20	20
21	21
22	22	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
23	23	SECTION 1. Title 40 of the General Laws entitled "HUMAN SERVICES" is hereby 1
24	24	amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 2
25	25	CHAPTER 6.7 3
26	26	RHODE ISLAND CHILD CARE FOR ALL ACT 4
27	27	40-6.7-1. Legislative findings. 5
28	28	The general assembly finds that: 6
29	29	(1) High-quality and affordable child care is critical to supporting children and families 7
30	30	throughout Rhode Island and ensuring a functioning labor market and economy in the state. 8
31	31	(2) Providing universal access to affordable, quality child care will address staffing 9
32	32	shortages across the economy, can reduce state government expenditures in other areas such as 10
33	33	Medicaid and food assistance, and will increase tax revenue as parents of young children are able 11
34	34	to stay in the workforce and earn incomes. 12
35	35	(3) Child care in the United States is currently a broken market, with the cost of care being 13
36	36	both too expensive to afford for many families who need it, and the wages of child care educators 14
37	37	being too low to attract and retain skilled staff. 15
38	38	(4) To create a child care system that supports our Rhode Island families, workers, and 16
39	39	economy we must recognize that child care is a public good akin to kindergarten through grade 17
40	40	twelve (K-12) education. This means assisting families to be able to choose sustainable, quality 18
41	41	child care for their children and supporting child care providers, centers, family child care homes, 19
42	42
43	43
44	44	LC002112 - Page 2 of 11
45	45	and child care educators to be able to provide high-quality care. 1
46	46	(5) According to a September 2021 report from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, one 2
47	47	out of every one hundred ten (110) U.S. workers and one out of every fifty-five (55) working 3
48	48	women works in the early education and child care sector. 4
49	49	(6) The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has established clear guidelines 5
50	50	for establishing whether child care is affordable, which state that families should pay no more than 6
51	51	seven percent (7%) of their family income towards child care. Using that standard, most families 7
52	52	with young children in Rhode Island require assistance to afford child care. 8
53	53	40-6.7-2. The office of early childhood development and learning. 9
54	54	(a) By April 1, 2024, the executive branch shall produce a report outlining the costs and 10
55	55	staffing requirements to create an office of early childhood development and learning (the “office”) 11
56	56	and describing the transition plan for how responsibilities previously managed by other 12
57	57	departments shall be transferred to the office. 13
58	58	(b) Effective June 30, 2025, the office of early childhood development and learning is 14
59	59	established within the executive branch of state government, to serve as the principal agency for 15
60	60	managing a statewide early learning system. The office of early childhood development and 16
61	61	learning shall have the following powers and duties in accordance with the following schedule: 17
62	62	(1) On or about June 30, 2025, to assume functions related to early childcare set forth in 18
63	63	chapter 12 of title 42, to be transferred from the department of human services, including the 19
64	64	administration of the child care assistance program, the quality rating and improvement system for 20
65	65	child care and early learning programs, and child care licensing; 21
66	66	(2) The Rhode Island head start collaboration office shall be transferred to the office of 22
67	67	early childhood development and learning. 23
68	68	(3) On or about June 30, 2025, to assume functions related to pre-kindergarten set forth in 24
69	69	chapter 87 of title 16, to be transferred from the department of education; 25
70	70	(4) On or before December 1, 2025, to provide the general assembly a comprehensive study 26
71	71	of the existing early childhood education infrastructure, a review of roles, functions, and programs 27
72	72	of the office of early childhood development and learning, and a workforce training plan in 28
73	73	collaboration with the department of labor and training and the department of education; and 29
74	74	(5) To be responsible for the development, sustainability and continuous improvement of 30
75	75	a mixed-delivery system of high-quality, accessible and affordable child care for children from 31
76	76	infancy through age twelve (12) as well as free, high-quality, accessible pre-kindergarten for 32
77	77	children ages three (3) and four (4). 33
78	78	(c) The department of administration may furnish the office of early childhood 34
79	79
80	80
81	81	LC002112 - Page 3 of 11
82	82	development and learning with suitable offices and telephone service in the state house, state office 1
83	83	building, or some other convenient location, for the transaction of its business. 2
84	84	40-6.7-3. Direct support to child care providers program. 3
85	85	(a) The office of early childhood development and learning shall establish programs of 4
86	86	annual funding to early education and care providers to meet the full range of costs of high quality 5
87	87	early education and care to the extent that fees, whether subsidized or unsubsidized, charged for 6
88	88	the children receiving early education and care services do not meet these costs. This funding shall 7
89	89	be used to address the following priorities: 8
90	90	(1) Expanding affordability of early education and care to families by reducing the 9
91	91	percentage of early education and care costs that must be covered by fees charged for children 10
92	92	receiving early education and care, whether subsidized or unsubsidized. 11
93	93	(2) Enabling early education and care providers to provide high-quality early education and 12
94	94	care and to comply fully with all applicable health, safety, educational, quality-assurance, and other 13
95	95	requirements imposed by the office consistent with this chapter to ensure the well-being and 14
96	96	promote healthy development and learning of children. 15
97	97	(3) Ensuring all early education and care providers are able to attract and retain qualified 16
98	98	and skilled educators for children from birth through kindergarten entry with compensation that is 17
99	99	competitive with similarly qualified kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) staff by providing 18
100	100	resources through wage supplements or other strategies. Early education and care providers 19
101	101	receiving funding must ensure that the compensation of the educators they employ is in line with 20
102	102	the benchmarks set by the early educator and care provider compensation task force outlined below 21
103	103	in this section. 22
104	104	(4) Maintaining and increasing the supply of early education and care spaces in ways that 23
105	105	address shortages in available spaces related to: location within the state, child age range, adequate 24
106	106	staffing and supports to achieve best practices for serving children with developmental delays and 25
107	107	disabilities, ability to promote the development of children who are multilingual learners, and 26
108	108	ability to provide care during nonstandard hours. 27
109	109	(5) Enabling early education and care providers to address emergency situations, during 28
110	110	which the cost of care significantly increases due to additional federal, state, or office requirements, 29
111	111	or the loss of fees due to absence or unenrollment jeopardizes early education and care providers’ 30
112	112	ability to retain their facilities and staff. 31
113	113	(6) Enabling early education and care providers to maintain or increase capacity to provide 32
114	114	direct services and to partner with early intervention programs and local school districts to ensure 33
115	115	children from birth through kindergarten entry who have developmental delays and disabilities 34
116	116
117	117
118	118	LC002112 - Page 4 of 11
119	119	have access to high-quality services required under the federal Individuals with Disabilities 1
120	120	Education Act. Additional services that early care and education providers shall be supported to 2
121	121	provide enrolled children and their families, can also include social work services, health and 3
122	122	mental health services, and other supports for families, parents, and caregivers. 4
123	123	(b) The office of early childhood development and learning shall conduct regular cost of 5
124	124	care surveys by which the rates paid to early education and care providers shall be determined. The 6
125	125	rate determination shall be based in part on the recommendations of the early educator and care 7
126	126	provider compensation task force, outlined below in this section, to allow providers to meet the 8
127	127	compensation benchmarks outlined by the task force. 9
128	128	(c) The office of early childhood development and learning shall require early education 10
129	129	and care providers to meet conditions for receiving funding under this section, including: 11
130	130	(1) Provide data that the office requires, as needed to carry out the office’s assessment and 12
131	131	reporting requirements under this chapter. 13
132	132	(2) Have a current Rhode Island child care license. 14
133	133	(3) Comply with all requirements of the funding and ensure funds are used solely for 15
134	134	eligible activities and costs that advance affordability, access, equity, and quality. 16
135	135	(d) The office of early childhood development and learning shall determine the amount of 17
136	136	funding to be paid under this section to an early education and care provider and shall take into 18
137	137	account the following factors: 19
138	138	(1) The provider’s existing enrollment of children, broken down by age range. 20
139	139	(2) Economies of scale, such that smaller providers may have higher costs in some areas 21
140	140	necessitating proportionately higher funding. 22
141	141	(3) Any variation in costs to the provider due to location within the state. 23
142	142	(e) The office of early childhood development and learning shall establish a program of 24
143	143	annual grants to early education and child care providers who may apply for the grants to assist 25
144	144	with special categories of care that present particular challenges to providing at a rate that is 26
145	145	affordable to families. The types of care eligible for these grants may include infant care, care for 27
146	146	children with physical, intellectual, or developmental disabilities, and non-traditional hour care. 28
147	147	(f) The office of early childhood development and learning shall accord to the early 29
148	148	education and care providers to which the office allocates funding under this section a presumption 30
149	149	of annual renewal if the provider has complied with all requirements and the appropriations for this 31
150	150	section are not reduced such that renewal of all providers is not possible. 32
151	151	(g) In the event of insufficient funding for all eligible early education and care providers, 33
152	152	the office of early childhood development and learning shall select providers based on the following 34
153	153
154	154
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156	156	criteria: 1
157	157	(1) The number of children with physical, developmental, or intellectual disabilities, 2
158	158	children who are homeless, and children who are at risk for involvement with or in the care of the 3
159	159	department of children, youth and families (“DCYF”) currently enrolled with the provider. 4
160	160	(2) Whether the provider, if funded, would have the capacity and expertise to serve children 5
161	161	with developmental delays or disabilities, or children who are multilingual learners or whose 6
162	162	parents or caregivers have limited English proficiency. 7
163	163	(3) Whether the provider, if funded, would have the capacity and expertise to serve children 8
164	164	and families with physical, developmental, or intellectual disabilities as defined by statute, children 9
165	165	who are homeless, and children who are at risk for involvement with or in the care of DCYF. 10
166	166	(4) Whether the provider, if funded, would increase services in locations within the state 11
167	167	that have shortages of spaces for particular age groups, such as infants and toddlers, or that have 12
168	168	overall shortages of early education and care spaces or unmet needs for nonstandard hours of care; 13
169	169	and 14
170	170	(5) Whether the provider, if funded, would implement a proposed quality improvement 15
171	171	plan or other innovations that increase the quality of its early education and care services. 16
172	172	(h) The office of early childhood development and learning shall adopt regulations 17
173	173	implementing the provisions of this section, after providing the opportunity for public comment, to 18
174	174	be accepted through both testimony at public hearings and written comments, and after 19
175	175	consideration of these comments. 20
176	176	40-6.7-4. Child care assistance - family income definitions. 21
177	177	(a) For purposes of this section, "income" for families receiving cash assistance under § 22
178	178	40-5.2-11 means gross, earned income and unearned income, subject to the income exclusions in 23
179	179	§§ 40-5.2-10(g)(2) and 40-5.2-10(g)(3). Income for families applying for or receiving low-income 24
180	180	child care shall mean gross earned income minus a twenty percent (20%) disregard applied to the 25
181	181	earnings of each adult family member. Earnings of a child under age eighteen (18) years shall not 26
182	182	be counted. Income shall also include unearned income subject to exclusions as determined by 27
183	183	office regulations. 28
184	184	(b) In determining eligibility for child care assistance for children of members of reserve 29
185	185	components called to active duty during a time of conflict, the office shall freeze the family 30
186	186	composition and the family income of the reserve component member as it was in the month prior 31
187	187	to the month of leaving for active duty. This freeze shall continue until the individual is officially 32
188	188	discharged from active duty. 33
189	189	40-6.7-5. Elements of expanded assistance program. 34
190	190
191	191
192	192	LC002112 - Page 6 of 11
193	193	(a) Families whose income is at or below fifty percent (50%) of the Rhode Island state 1
194	194	median income shall not be charged any copayments for subsidized early education and child care. 2
195	195	Copayments for families who are not eligible for fully subsidized early education and care child 3
196	196	care shall not exceed seven percent (7%) of the family’s total income. 4
197	197	(b) The early education and care assistance program shall provide funding for child care 5
198	198	assistance to enable all families to afford and access high quality early education and care for 6
199	199	infants, toddlers, preschool-age, and school-age children; provided that, a school-age child’s 7
200	200	assistance shall continue until at least the end of the school year in which the child reaches the 8
201	201	maximum age. 9
202	202	(c) Funding for childcare assistance may be used for early education and care provided by 10
203	203	entities that are licensed by the State of Rhode Island. 11
204	204	(d) The office of early childhood development and learning shall allocate funding to 12
205	205	increase the numbers of families receiving assistance in stages, in accordance with the following 13
206	206	income range priorities: 14
207	207	(1) By June 30, 2026, the office of early childhood development and learning shall allocate 15
208	208	funding to fully subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all families in need of 16
209	209	these services whose income is at or below fifty percent (50%) of the state median income and to 17
210	210	all families who are experiencing homelessness or who are headed by a parent under age twenty 18
211	211	(20). 19
212	212	(2) By June 30, 2027, the office of early childhood development and learning shall fully 20
213	213	subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all families in need of these services, 21
214	214	whose income is above fifty percent (50%), but not exceeding one hundred percent (100%), of the 22
215	215	Rhode Island state median income, with any family fee set in accordance with subsection (f) of this 23
216	216	section. 24
217	217	(3) By June 30, 2028, the office of early childhood development and learning shall fully 25
218	218	subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all families in need of these services, 26
219	219	whose income is above one hundred percent (100%), but not exceeding two hundred percent 27
220	220	(200%), of the Rhode Island state median income, with any family fee set in accordance with 28
221	221	subsection (f) of this section. 29
222	222	(e) Provided that additional funds shall be made available to the state through general 30
223	223	revenue, restricted receipt accounts, or if the federal government shall otherwise obligate itself to 31
224	224	release additional funding not available upon enactment of this chapter, the office shall allocate 32
225	225	funding to increase the numbers of families receiving assistance based on income eligibility in 33
226	226	accordance with the following income range priorities: 34
227	227
228	228
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230	230	(1) First priority: to fully subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all 1
231	231	families in need of these services, whose income is at or below three hundred percent (300%) of 2
232	232	the Rhode Island state median income, with any family fee set in accordance with subsection (f) of 3
233	233	this section. 4
234	234	(2) Second priority: to fully subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all 5
235	235	families in need of these services, whose income is above three hundred percent (300%), but not 6
236	236	exceeding four hundred percent (400%), of the Rhode Island state median income, with any family 7
237	237	fee set in accordance with subsection (f) of this section. 8
238	238	(3) Third priority: to fully subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all 9
239	239	families in need of these services, whose income is above four hundred percent (400%), but not 10
240	240	exceeding five hundred percent (500%), of the Rhode Island state median income, with any family 11
241	241	fee set in accordance with subsection (f) of this section. 12
242	242	(4) Fourth priority: to subsidize the cost of early education and care services to all families 13
243	243	in need of these services, whose income is above five hundred percent (500%) of the Rhode Island 14
244	244	state median income, with any family fee set in accordance with subsection (f) of this section. 15
245	245	(f) Family copayment amounts for all children of a family with children enrolled in 16
246	246	qualifying early education and care services shall be determined in accordance with the family’s 17
247	247	gross income. Copayments may not be determined per each child enrolled in early education and 18
248	248	care services. 19
249	249	(1) Beginning June 30, 2026, a family receiving subsidized child care from an early 20
250	250	education and care provider with an income greater than fifty percent (50%) of the Rhode Island 21
251	251	state median income shall be required to pay a co-payment as follows: 22
252	252	A family with a gross household income of Shall pay a Maximum of this % of gross 23
253	253	this % of the Rhode Island state median income for co-Payment 24
254	254	income for that family size 25
255	255	0%-50% 0% 26
256	256	50%-75% 1% 27
257	257	75%-100% 2% 28
258	258	(2) Beginning June 30, 2027, a family receiving subsidized child care from an early 29
259	259	education and care provider with an income greater than fifty percent (50%) of the Rhode Island 30
260	260	state median income shall be required to pay a co-payment as follows: 31
261	261	A family with a gross household income of Shall pay a Maximum of this % of gross 32
262	262	this percent (%) of the Rhode Island state income for co-Payment 33
263	263	median income for that family size 34
264	264
265	265
266	266	LC002112 - Page 8 of 11
267	267	0%-50% 0% 1
268	268	50%-75% 1% 2
269	269	75%-100% 2% 3
270	270	100%-125% 3% 4
271	271	125%-150% 4% 5
272	272	150%-175% 5% 6
273	273	175%-200% 6% 7
274	274	More than 200% 7% 8
275	275	(g) Family income, for the purposes of eligibility for early education and care assistance 9
276	276	shall include income of parents living with the child receiving subsidized care, but shall not include: 10
277	277	any form of income of legal guardians, foster parents, caregivers, or other adult family members; 11
278	278	income of or for siblings who are not receiving subsidized care; or earned income of any minor 12
279	279	child. 13
280	280	(h) The office of early childhood development and learning shall subsidize early education 14
281	281	and care by: 15
282	282	(1) Providing vouchers for payment to providers, enabling families to access early 16
283	283	education and care providers of their choice; and 17
284	284	(2) Offering families the alternative of an open space with a provider that is subsidized 18
285	285	under the provider’s agreement with the office. 19
286	286	(i) The office of early childhood development and learning shall require early education 20
287	287	and care providers, as a condition for receiving grants from the office under this section, to enter 21
288	288	into and comply with licensing requirements with the office, developed by the office and requiring 22
289	289	the provider to comply with all applicable requirements of this chapter and any other federal or 23
290	290	state requirements necessary to receive funding for grants provided to families under this section. 24
291	291	(j) The office of early childhood development and learning and its agents shall not reduce, 25
292	292	terminate, or deny continued assistance to families until and unless the family is determined to be 26
293	293	ineligible and is given the opportunity for an administrative appeal hearing. 27
294	294	(k) The office of early childhood development and learning shall not terminate or deny 28
295	295	continued assistance on the grounds of ineligibility based on income to families who were receiving 29
296	296	subsidized early education and care as of the effective date of this section, as long as the family’s 30
297	297	income does not exceed two hundred percent (200%) of Rhode Island state median income. 31
298	298	(l) The office of early childhood development and learning shall not terminate or deny 32
299	299	continued assistance on the grounds of ineligibility based on income to families who began 33
300	300	receiving assistance under this section, as long as the family’s income does not exceed two hundred 34
301	301
302	302
303	303	LC002112 - Page 9 of 11
304	304	percent (200%) of Rhode Island state median income. The office may create a formula for adjusting 1
305	305	assistance to taper for incomes beyond two hundred percent (200%) of Rhode Island state median 2
306	306	income. 3
307	307	(m) The office of early childhood development and learning shall review the early 4
308	308	education and care assistance program at least annually to identify access barriers to families, 5
309	309	including, but not limited to, linguistic barriers, office paperwork, and verification requirements, 6
310	310	and shall take action to remove access barriers, including by technological improvements to enable 7
311	311	management of larger numbers of families applying for and receiving assistance and by ongoing 8
312	312	improvement of families’ experiences in dealing with the office and its agents. The office of early 9
313	313	childhood development and learning shall submit an annual report with its findings to the governor 10
314	314	and general assembly. 11
315	315	(n) The office of early childhood development and learning shall adopt any additional 12
316	316	regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this section, after providing the opportunity 13
317	317	for public comment, to be accepted through both testimony at public hearings and written 14
318	318	comments, and after consideration of these comments. 15
319	319	40-6.7-6. Establishment of compensation structure needed to attract and retain 16
320	320	quality educators. 17
321	321	(a) The office shall convene an early educator and care provider compensation task force 18
322	322	to study the issue of compensation structure for provider staff involved in the direct education and 19
323	323	care of children that is commensurate with annual pay scales for equivalent teacher positions in the 20
324	324	public school system, taking into account: job responsibilities; contractual requirements; and the 21
325	325	skills, experience, and credentials of the individual. 22
326	326	(b) The task force shall recommend compensation guidelines for other provider staff not 23
327	327	involved in the direct education or care of children that are competitive in the labor market for such 24
328	328	staff, enabling providers to maintain stable staffing. 25
329	329	(c) The task force shall recommend guidelines for the minimum required benefits, and for 26
330	330	recommended additional benefits, for provider staff, including, but not limited, to health insurance, 27
331	331	retirement benefits, paid vacation, and other leave time. 28
332	332	(d) The office may adopt regulations implementing the recommendations of the task force, 29
333	333	after providing the opportunity for public comment, to be accepted through both testimony at public 30
334	334	hearings and written comments, and after consideration of these comments. 31
335	335	(e) The office structure and guidelines shall not preclude provider staff from exercising any 32
336	336	rights they may have to collective bargaining about pay and benefits. 33
337	337	(f) The office shall review the compensation structure and benefits guidelines annually and 34
338	338
339	339
340	340	LC002112 - Page 10 of 11
341	341	update them, as needed, based on increased cost of living. 1
342	342	40-6.7-7. Creation of a public child care option pilot program. 2
343	343	The office of early childhood development and learning may develop innovative child care 3
344	344	programs, options, or approaches that increase access, equity, and affordability for families. This 4
345	345	includes, but is not limited to, developing and operating a public child care option. The office shall 5
346	346	develop a pilot program for a public child care option by June 30, 2027. 6
347	347	SECTION 2. This act shall take effect January 1, 2024. 7
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352	352
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354	354	EXPLANATION
355	355	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
356	356	OF
357	357	A N A C T
358	358	RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES -- RHODE ISLAND CHILD CARE FOR ALL ACT
359	359	***
360	360	This act would create the office of early childhood development and learning to provide 1
361	361	access to affordable, quality child care and to create a child care system that supports families, 2
362	362	workers and the Rhode Island economy. 3
363	363	This act would take effect January 1, 2024. 4
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365	365	LC002112
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