A 9302: Establishes the regulated child care workforce as a priority population for child care assistance program funds; requires a public education and outreach campaign.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9302 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY December 10, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. TAPIA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Children and Families AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to enacting the "child care for caregivers act" The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "child care for caregivers act". 3 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 410-x of the social 4 services law, as amended by section 3 of part U of chapter 56 of the 5 laws of 2023, is amended to read as follows: 6 (a) (i) The office of children and family services may establish 7 priorities for the families which will be eligible to receive funding; 8 provided that the priorities provide that eligible families will receive 9 equitable access to child care assistance funds to the extent that these 10 funds are available. The office of children and family services shall 11 ensure that families in receipt of child care assistance as of September 12 thirtieth, two thousand twenty-three who were identified as a priority 13 population under a local social services district's consolidated 14 services plan shall continue to be eligible for such assistance, 15 provided they meet all other applicable eligibility requirements for 16 such assistance. 17 (ii) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the 18 office of children and family services shall, consistent with federal 19 law and regulation, designate families in which a parent or caretaker 20 relative is a member of the regulated child care workforce as a top 21 priority population for the receipt of child care assistance under this 22 subdivision. 23 (iii) For purposes of this subdivision, "regulated child care work- 24 force" shall mean individuals employed by licensed or registered child 25 day care centers, programs operating as group family day care homes or EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD13976-01-5 
 A. 9302 2 1 family day care homes, enrolled legally exempt providers, or school-age 2 child care programs regulated by the office of children and family 3 services, including but not limited to teachers, teaching assistants, 4 and teacher aides. 5 (iv) The office of children and family services shall ensure that 6 funding is set aside or otherwise reserved for regulated child care 7 workforce populations sufficient to provide child care assistance to 8 eligible families, to the extent of appropriations made available there- 9 for. 10 (v) The office of children and family services shall conduct, or cause 11 to be conducted, a statewide public education and outreach campaign to 12 inform members of the regulated child care workforce of their eligibil- 13 ity and priority status for child care assistance under subparagraph 14 (ii) of this paragraph. Such campaign shall include, but not be limited 15 to, publication of information on the office of children and family 16 services website, coordination with local social services districts, and 17 collaboration with child care resource and referral agencies and employ- 18 er networks. 19 § 3. Paragraph (e) of subdivision 2 of section 410-x of the social 20 services law, as added by chapter 416 of the laws of 2000, is amended to 21 read as follows: 22 (e) The commissioner of the office of children and family services 23 shall submit a report to the governor, temporary president of the senate 24 and the speaker of the assembly on or before August thirty-first, two 25 thousand one concerning the implementation of this section. This report 26 shall include information concerning the disbursement of child care 27 assistance funds showing geographic distribution of children receiving 28 assistance within the state. The commissioner of the office of children 29 and family services shall submit an additional report concerning the 30 implementation of this section no later than August thirty-first, two 31 thousand twenty-seven, which shall include, but not be limited to, 32 information concerning the disbursement of child care assistance funds 33 to the regulated child care workforce. 34 § 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 35 have become a law.