Financing Child Care in the United States - Ewing Marion Kauffman ...

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ALLOCATING PUBLIC REVENUES SOCIAL AND HUMAN SERVICES COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT INITIATIVE (IOWA) DESCRIPTION This initiative authorizes Iowa communities to establish community empowerment areas and boards, using school district and county boundaries, to identify the needs of young children (0 to 5) and to plan and administer funding for services. A state empowerment board oversees funding, approves the formation of community empowerment areas, assists with interdepartmental coordination, seeks state and federal waivers, and pools existing federal, state and other public and private funds. WHEN ESTABLISHED The initiative was established by the state legislature during the 1998 legislative session. ANNUAL AMOUNT In FY1998–99, $9 million was appropriated. In the education reform bill (the School Ready Children Account), $5.2 million was appropriated as a grant incentive for communities to establish the initiative. These funds were targeted to preschool services and parent education provided by public or private agencies. The Department of Human Services made $3.8 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds available to support additional child care services in empowerment areas (the Early Childhood Program Account). SERVICES FUNDED Each local initiative taps into the two state funds: the School Ready Children Account, which provides the most flexibility, and the Early Childhood Program Account, which is more restrictive. School Ready funds may be used for a range of comprehensive services, including: child development, children’s health and safety, preschool for at–risk children and family support. Funds in the Early Childhood Program Account may be used to enhance child care capacity. Emphasis is placed on care for families that work non–traditional hours as well as on infant care and care for mildly ill children. A majority of the funds have been spent on early care and education, home visitation and parent support. Many communities have used these funds for preschool scholarships and increased child care subsidies. Mini–grant programs, additional staff training or child development specialists to provide support and consultation to early childhood program staff are common. Some communities have set aside funds for transportation to and from child care. Others are innovating by assisting staff in developing a transition plan for children prior to enrollment in another program or child care setting, integrating the Parents as Teachers program within child care settings, making “stabilization” funds and business support available to inner city centers (to help fill the gap between cost and price), or establishing a bad debt policy to reimburse child care providers for a limited amount of bad debt. Some local empowerment areas also are tackling systemic issues, such as establishing a single point of entry to coordinate all child care subsidy funds, including those from the United Way. HOW FUNDS DISTRIBUTED The initiative has two funding streams with different goals and funding mechanisms. The School Ready Children Account is administered by the Department of Education. These funds are distributed through a competitive grant process, but they will convert to a funding formula in FY2002. The Early Childhood Program Account is administered by the Department of Human Services, and is distributed using a state formula based on the area’s welfare reform caseload. POPULATION SERVED Currently there are 56 designated community empowerment areas representing 98 of Iowa’s 99 counties. Funds may be used for children and families at all income levels. STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS • Iowa has had a strong, state–administered preschool initiative for many years and was building a network of local resource and referral agencies. Early childhood advocates initially raised concerns that the quality of these programs might be eroded as funds were transferred to the local level as block grants. The state has initiated an evaluation project with Iowa State University in response to this concern. • Providing adequate technical assistance to all communities involved in the empowerment initiative has been a challenge due to the lack of staff–time available to fulfill this function. OTHER SITES WITH SIMILAR STRATEGIES Many states have developed initiatives that help communities plan for and administer flexible funds for early childhood services. However, few have used the combination of TANF and state education funds for these initiatives. CONTACT Kris Bell Community Empowerment Facilitator Iowa Department of Management Room 12, State Capitol Building Des Moines, Iowa 50319 Phone (515) 281 4537 E–mail Kris.Bell@IDOM.state.ia.us 65
CHILD CARE WAGE$ PROJECT (NORTH CAROLINA) DESCRIPTION The Child Care WAGE$ Project provides salary supplements to child care teachers, directors and family child care providers serving children through age 5. The salary supplements are available to individuals with earnings less than a specified amount, who have achieved early childhood educational credentials and who have had steady employment at the same child care program for at least six months. The amount of the salary supplement increases as the level of education increases. WHEN ESTABLISHED The Child Care WAGE$ Project, established in 1994, was initially a pilot project in one county with a budget of $100,000. After early success, additional counties joined the project. In 1999, the Child Care WAGE$ Project went statewide, and all North Carolina counties were invited to participate. ANNUAL AMOUNT In FY1999-2000, approximately $4.8 million was spent on WAGE$. Most of the funding is derived from state investment in the Smart Start program, profiled on page 151, with $500,000 in supplemental funding from the federal Child Care and Development Fund. SERVICES FUNDED WAGE$ provides a salary supplement to child care staff based on their current level of education. Individuals with higher educational levels receive larger salary supplements. The salary supplement is available to individuals working with children from birth through age 5, in a regulated family child care home or a center for at least 10 hours a week. Two scales have been developed for use in the WAGE$ project. One scale, for family child care providers and center-based teachers or assistant teachers, provides for annual salary supplements ranging from $200 to $3,000 annually. A second scale is geared to center directors, with salary supplements ranging from $300 to $2,250 annually. Individuals who have received credentials or degrees, as well as those who have passed certain benchmarks toward their early childhood degrees, are eligible for the salary supplement. Individuals working less than 40 hours per week receive a pro-rated salary supplement. Eligible applicants must demonstrate that their current wages fall below the maximums set for the WAGE$ project. These caps are indexed proportionately with the salaries of public school teachers. For 2000, family child care providers and child care teachers/assistant teachers must earn less than $14.14 per hour and directors must earn less than $14.72 per hour to be eligible for supplements. All applicants must be employed at the time they apply and must complete six months with the same child care program to receive salary supplements. An individual who moves to another provider in less than six months must start the commitment period over again at the new site. WAGE$ participants are encouraged to obtain additional educational credentials so that they can receive increased salary supplements. Participants are referred to the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood ® project for this purpose. T.E.A.C.H. is profiled on page 153. HOW FUNDS DISTRIBUTED Salary supplements are distributed to the individual WAGE$ participants through a nonprofit statewide organization, Child Care Services Association (CCSA), every six months. Individual teachers, assistant teachers, family child care providers and directors complete an application, and provide documentation verifying current employment, wages and educational credentials. Once the WAGE$ participant (and the employer) has successfully completed the application and the participant has remained continuously employed at the same child care program for six months, the employee receives a salary supplement from CCSA. The salary supplement is reported as income to the relevant government agencies, and the individual pays applicable taxes. POPULATION SERVED WAGE$ is available to teachers, assistant teachers, family child care providers, assistant directors and child care center directors who meet minimum educational qualifications and who work at least 10 hours weekly with preschool children at one site for six months. At present, 56 of 100 counties in North Carolina have individuals enrolled in WAGE$, and more than 4,750 child care professionals in the counties were expected to participate during FY1999-2000. STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS • By providing a salary enhancement to individuals based on current levels of educational attainment, the Child Care WAGE$ Project helps address the problem of staff turnover and complements the T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood ® project, which helps individuals to advance their educational qualifications. While the primary focus of WAGE$ is to reduce turnover, the graduated salary supplement also helps create a career ladder for participants. Evidence indicates that the primary goal, reducing turnover, is being met. A survey of three counties during FY1998-1999 showed significant reductions in staff turnover. In Orange County, turnover fell from a pre-program rate of 36 percent to 8 percent; in Davidson County, turnover dropped from 44 percent to 11 percent; and in Nash/Edgecombe Counties, from 32 percent to 12 percent. 66
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FINANCING CHILD CARE IN THE UNITED
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FINANCING CHILD CARE IN THE UNITED
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ABOUT THE GRANTEE PHILADELPHIA CITI
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:02 ALLOCATING PUBLIC REVENUES 54 O
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HOW TO USE THIS CATALOG This catalo
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DIFFERENT EXPECTATIONS The expectat
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03 LONG-TERM THINKING Successful st
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LEVERAGING Matching and leveraging
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TAXES Income taxes are the major so
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EMPLOYER INCOME TAXES Twenty-five s
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EMPLOYERS AT&T FAMILY CARE DEVELOPM
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FINANCING CHILD CARE IN THE PRIVATE
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PHILANTHROPY ALLEGHENY COUNTY EARLY
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When businesses in the private sect
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PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS EMPLOYE
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PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS EMPLOYE
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PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS COMMUNI
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CAPITAL INVESTMENT PARTNERSHIPS CHI
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PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS CAPITAL
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LOOKING TO THE FUTURE TAX POLICY Th
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LOOKING TO THE FUTURE THE HOME MORT
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LOOKING TO THE FUTURE HIGHER EDUCAT
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APPENDIX 174
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WHAT YOU OWN Property taxes on real
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INDEX 178
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Child Care Scholarship Fund of the
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lotteries and gaming, 14 Neighborho
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Area, Kansas and Missouri), 133—1
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income tax provisions for child car
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