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National report points to problems with the Texas child care assistance programAustin, Texas—September 29, 2009— A new report from the National Women’s Law Center, studies child care assistance policy in all fifty states and Washington DC. The study, State Child Care Assistance Policies 2009: Most States Hold the Line, But Some Lose Ground in Hard Times, found that between February of 2008 and February of 2009 more states made cuts than made improvements in desperately needed child care assistance, worsening an already bleak landscape for parents trying to afford reliable child care. Texas ranked near the bottom on all four categories the study analyzed: reimbursement rates for providers serving families receiving child care assistance, income eligibility limits to qualify for assistance, waiting lists for assistance, and co-payments required of parents receiving assistance. Texas is different than other states when it comes to child care assistance policy. In the Lone Star state child care policy varies significantly across 28 different Local Workforce Development Areas. Each area has significant latitude in setting child care assistance policy. • Reimbursement Rates: States determine reimbursement rates for child care providers who care for children receiving child care assistance. Low reimbursement rates deprive child care providers of resources crucial for supporting high-quality care and can discourage high-quality providers from serving families receiving child care assistance. TEXAS The federal government recommends a reimbursement rate at the 75th percentile of market, but no where in Texas does the reimbursement rate reach that level. In Houston, for example, providers are reimbursed at less that half of what it cost to properly care for children. This is a particularly daunting problem in Texas, as the Texas minimum wage has risen 41% between 2004-2009, while the average reimbursement rate in Texas has only risen 5.75% during the same period. Child care providers are having to do more and more with less and less. • Income Eligibility: A family’s ability to obtain child care assistance also depends on a state’s income eligibility limits, including whether a state makes annual adjustments for inflation to eligibility limits so that families do not become ineligible for assistance merely because their income keeps pace with inflation. TEXASDepending on where one resides in Texas, income eligibility limits fluctuate from $26,400 - $42,703. Basic eligibility limits in the state are often counterintuitive; for instance in Houston, a single mother with one child can make no more than $21,855/year in order to qualify for assistance, while in East Texas that same person can make up to $31,803/year and qualify. Though the cost of living in Houston is double the cost of living in East Texas, eligibility limits are far higher for East Texans than they are for Houstonites. • Waiting Lists: Families that qualify for child care assistance generally have no guarantee that they will receive it. Instead, a state may place eligible families on a waiting list or turn away families altogether. TEXASIn 2009, 19 states placed families on the waiting list for child care assistance or turned away families without even adding their names to the waiting list. Texas was one of these states. Texas is a perennial leader in child care assistance waiting lists across the country. Roughly 25,000 children are waiting for child care assistance in Texas. • Co-payments: If states set co-payment rates too high, families may have difficulty meeting them or may be discouraged from participating in the child care assistance program at all. TEXASIn all areas of Texas, most families are required to pay 9%-11% of their monthly income as a co-payment when receiving child care assistance. 18 states have more affordable co-payment requirements than Texas, though the majority of states range from 9%-15%. Co-payment rates have held steady in Texas for the last eight years. The Texas Early Childhood Education Coalition recognizes the challenges subsidized child care presents in Texas, and in response has created a Child Care Subsidies Work Group. Coalition members are meeting regularly with policymakers, experts, and community members, to produce clear policy recommendations to strengthen the quality and supply of care for working Texas families. Access the NWLC’s report: "State Child Care Assistance Policies 2009: Most States Hold the Line, But Some Lose Ground in Hard Times" at www.nwlc.org |
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