88R6773 MM-D
By: Johnson of Dallas H.B. No. 3771
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the creation of the employer child-care contribution
partnership program administered by the Texas Workforce
Commission; authorizing a civil penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by
adding Chapter 319 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 319. EMPLOYER CHILD-CARE CONTRIBUTION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM
Sec. 319.001. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "program"
means the employer child-care contribution partnership program
established under this chapter.
Sec. 319.002. ESTABLISHMENT. The commission shall
establish and administer the employer child-care contribution
partnership program to support families in this state in accessing
high-quality child care by incentivizing eligible employers to
contribute to eligible employee child-care costs and providing a
state match for funds contributed by eligible employers.
Sec. 319.003. ADMINISTRATION. (a) In administering the
program, the commission shall:
(1) create a standardized agreement described by
Section 319.007 and process agreements to ensure that the employer,
employee, and child-care provider each enter into the agreement
before enrolling in the program;
(2) establish eligibility verification procedures for
employers, employees, and child-care providers as a prerequisite
for the commission to issue a state match under the program;
(3) collect and verify household income information
from eligible employees and determine the amount of the state match
for which the employee is eligible in accordance with Section
319.009;
(4) develop procedures for notifying each party to the
agreement of the party's enrollment in the program as soon as
practicable after receiving and processing the contract and
determining each party's eligibility;
(5) establish confidentiality protocols for the
commission to safeguard the personal information of participating
employees, employers, and child-care providers;
(6) establish requirements for an employer or a
child-care provider to report the nonpayment of a contribution
toward eligible child-care services;
(7) establish procedures for issuing and logging a
state match paid to a participating child-care provider;
(8) maintain records regarding the balance of the
program fund for each fiscal year and all payments made from the
fund;
(9) establish criteria for disqualifying participants
from the program;
(10) establish procedures for hearing appeals from
program participants;
(11) establish procedures for recouping state match
money or a portion of state match money if there is an overpayment
to a participating child-care provider;
(12) secure third-party vendors to assist in
administering the program in accordance with federal and state law;
(13) develop informational material regarding the
program's objectives, benefits, and eligibility requirements and
distribute the material to employers, employees, and child-care
providers; and
(14) maintain a waitlist if the money in the program
fund is insufficient to approve all agreements received and provide
a state match in accordance with Section 319.009(b).
(b) The commission may:
(1) delegate an administrative duty under the program
to a division of the commission;
(2) coordinate and share information with other state
agencies; and
(3) contract with third parties to administer the
program or parts of the program.
(c) The commission may not disclose an employee's personal
information without the employee's written consent.
Sec. 319.004. EMPLOYER DUTIES. (a) An employer who
provides child-care assistance to an employee as a benefit of
employment may participate in the program by entering into an
agreement described by Section 319.007 with an eligible employee
and child-care provider. The employer shall:
(1) enter into a standardized agreement under Section
319.007 with an eligible employee and child-care provider;
(2) submit the agreement to the commission for
verification of eligibility and approval;
(3) submit any additional information the commission
considers necessary; and
(4) on verification and approval of the agreement by
the commission, make contributions to the employee's eligible
child-care costs in accordance with the agreement directly to the
child-care provider or through a third-party vendor.
(b) The comptroller may require employers seeking economic
development incentives to participate in the program.
Sec. 319.005. EMPLOYEE DUTIES. (a) An employee shall
complete an agreement described by Section 319.007 with the
employee's employer and a child-care provider and provide any
additional information the commission considers necessary.
(b) The employee shall pay the child-care provider the cost
of child-care services not covered by the employer's contribution
and the state match.
(c) If the amount of an employee's employer contribution and
state match provided under the employee's agreement are
insufficient to pay all of the employee's child-care costs, the
employee may combine those amounts with the employer contribution
and state match money provided under an agreement made under the
program by a member of the employee's household or family to pay the
total costs, provided that combining the amounts does not result in
overpayment to the provider.
Sec. 319.006. PROVIDER ELIGIBILITY. To be eligible to
receive money under the program, a child-care provider must:
(1) participate in the Texas Rising Star program; and
(2) enter into an agreement described by Section
319.007.
Sec. 319.007. PROGRAM AGREEMENTS. The commission shall
create a standardized agreement for use by employers, employees,
and providers participating in the program, to be completed and
agreed to by each party. The agreement must include:
(1) the name, physical location, size, and industry of
the employer;
(2) the name and phone number of the employer's point
of contact;
(3) the name and physical location of the child-care
provider;
(4) the name and phone number of the child-care
provider's point of contact;
(5) the name and home address of the employee;
(6) the total amount of the child-care contribution to
be paid by the employer to the provider, either directly or through
a third-party vendor;
(7) the total amount of the state match to be paid to
the provider, either directly or through a third-party vendor;
(8) the duration of the contract, which may not extend
beyond the end of the fiscal year in any given year;
(9) the frequency of the contribution to be made
directly to the child-care provider in accordance with the
provider's established billing cycle; and
(10) demographic information about the employee.
Sec. 319.008. PROGRAM FUND. (a) The commission shall
establish and administer the program fund as a dedicated account in
the general revenue fund.
(b) The following amounts shall be deposited in the fund:
(1) any money appropriated by the legislature for the
fund for purposes of this chapter;
(2) interest earned on the investment of money in the
fund;
(3) funds resulting from civil penalties collected
under Section 319.012; and
(4) gifts, grants, and donations received for the
fund.
(c) Money in the fund may be appropriated only to the Texas
Workforce Commission for purposes authorized by this subchapter.
(d) Any money remaining in the program fund at the end of a
fiscal year is carried forward to the next fiscal year.
(e) In each fiscal year, 25 percent of the total fund shall
be distributed under agreements with employers with fewer than 50
full-time employees.
(f) During the fiscal year ending September 1, 2024, five
percent of the total fund shall be distributed to the commission to
administer the program. In each subsequent fiscal year, three
percent of the total fund shall be distributed to the commission for
that purpose.
Sec. 319.009. STATE MATCH. (a) On verifying the
eligibility of an employer, employee, and child-care provider and
the agreement between the parties, the commission shall issue a
state match in accordance with this section from the program fund to
a child-care provider in accordance with the terms of the
agreement. The commission may distribute the state match money
directly or through a third-party vendor, as applicable.
(b) The commission shall consider agreements in the order
received and may approve an agreement and issue a state match only
if there is sufficient money in the program fund to pay the costs
under the agreement.
(c) The commission shall provide a state match equal to the
contribution made by the employee's employer if the employee has a
median household income that does not exceed the median state
household income.
(d) If the employee's median household income exceeds the
median state household income, the commission shall provide a state
match as follows:
(1) 90 percent of the employer's contribution for an
employee whose household income is not more than 120 percent of the
median household income;
(2) 80 percent of the employer's contribution for an
employee whose household income is greater than 120 percent but not
more than 140 percent of the median household income;
(3) 70 percent of the employer's contribution for an
employee whose household income is greater than 140 percent but not
more than 160 percent of the median household income;
(4) 60 percent of the employer's contribution for an
employee whose household income is greater than 160 percent but not
more than 180 percent of the median household income; and
(5) 50 percent of the employer's contribution for an
employee whose household income is more than 180 percent of the
median household income.
(e) A state match issued under the program and administered
by the commission may not be considered compensation for an
employee's service.
Sec. 319.010. MODIFICATION AND TERMINATION OF AGREEMENTS.
(a) An employer or employee may terminate an agreement under the
program at any time and for any reason. The terminating party shall
notify all the parties to the agreement and specify the desired
termination date. All parties to the agreement shall be
financially obligated, according to the provisions of the contract,
up to the termination date.
(b) If the relationship between the employee and employer is
severed, the employer shall notify the child-care provider and the
commission not later than the third business day after the date of
the separation and the contract is terminated on the calendar date
provided by the employer in the notification. If an employer fails
to provide notice regarding the separation and the commission
issues a state match to the provider on behalf of that employer's
employee, the employer shall reimburse the commission for the
amount of the state match.
(c) If an employer fails to make a contribution for the
employee's eligible child-care costs in accordance with the terms
of the agreement, the child-care provider shall notify the
commission not later than the fifth business day after the date the
provider does not receive a payment. On receiving notice from a
provider regarding nonpayment, the commission shall temporarily
cease providing a state match and shall notify the employer that the
agreement will be terminated unless the employer remedies the
nonpayment not later than the fifth business day after receiving
notification from the commission. If the provider fails to notify
the commission of the nonpayment and receives a state match from the
commission on behalf of that employer's employee, the provider
shall reimburse the commission for the amount of the state match.
(d) If an employee fails to pay the child-care provider for
costs not covered by the employer contribution and the state match
in accordance with the terms of the agreement, the child-care
provider may give the employee reasonable time to remedy the
nonpayment. A child-care provider may notify the commission and
terminate the contract on the date that the notification was
issued. If the child-care provider voluntarily excuses the
employee's nonpayment or the child-care provider does not notify
the commission within two calendar months from the date of the
employee's nonpayment and continues to provide services, the
agreement shall be automatically modified to reflect the reduction
in value.
(e) If a child-care provider ceases participation or
otherwise becomes ineligible to participate in the program, the
provider shall notify all parties to the agreement immediately.
Sec. 319.011. REPORTS. (a) The commission shall publish
and submit to the legislature a report detailing the efficacy of the
program not later than July 15 and December 15 of each year. The
report must include the following information about the program:
(1) the amount appropriated to the program fund during
the preceding state fiscal year;
(2) the total number of standardized agreements
submitted by employers;
(3) the total amount of state matches paid out of the
program fund, disaggregated by county;
(4) information regarding the size, geographical
location, and industry type of employers who participated in the
program;
(5) number, license type, Texas Rising Star quality
rating level, and geographical distribution of participating
child-care providers;
(6) average cost for services charged by child-care
providers participating in the program and information regarding
the amount by which those costs have increased or decreased during
the most recent reporting period compared with previous reporting
periods;
(7) the number and total dollar value of agreements
not approved by the commission; and
(8) demographic information regarding employees
participating in the program.
(b) Not later than September 1, 2024, the commission shall
publish and submit to the legislature a report detailing the
commission's plan for implementing the program. This subsection
expires September 1, 2025.
Sec. 319.012. FALSE INFORMATION; CIVIL PENALTY. A person
who intentionally provides false information to the commission for
purposes of receiving the benefits of the program shall be subject
to a civil penalty of not more than $500 per violation. All money
collected as a result of penalties assessed under this section
shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the employee
child-care assistance program fund.
SECTION 2. Not later than September 1, 2024, the Texas
Workforce Commission shall adopt any rules necessary to administer
the employer child-care contribution partnership program
established under Chapter 319, Labor Code, as added by this Act.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.