STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5929--A 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 8, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sen. AVELLA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to establishing a child care availability taskforce to evaluate the need for and avail- ability of child care throughout the state The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section 2 390-k to read as follows: 3 § 390-k. Child care availability taskforce. 1. There shall be estab- 4 lished within the office of children and family services a child care 5 taskforce for the purpose of evaluating the need for and availability of 6 child care throughout the state. 7 2. The taskforce shall be chaired by the commissioners of the office 8 of children and family services and the office of temporary and disabil- 9 ity assistance, or their designees. Members of the taskforce shall serve 10 without compensation for three year terms, but may be reimbursed for 11 actual costs incurred for participation on such taskforce. Ensuring 12 adequate geographic representation, members of the taskforce shall be 13 appointed by the governor and comprised as follows: 14 (a) two individuals shall be appointed upon the recommendation of the 15 speaker of the assembly, at least one of whom shall be a parent who has 16 utilized subsidized child care; 17 (b) two individuals shall be appointed upon the recommendation of the 18 temporary president of the senate, at least one of whom shall be a 19 parent who has utilized subsidized child care; 20 (c) two representatives of a child care resource and referral agency; 21 (d) two representatives of home-based child care providers; 22 (e) two representatives of center-based child care providers; and EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD11372-04-7S. 5929--A 2 1 (f) two representatives from the business community. 2 3. The taskforce shall examine the following: 3 (a) access to subsidized child care, including the percentage of the 4 eligible population receiving a child care subsidy; 5 (b) cost of care for families eligible for but not receiving a child 6 care subsidy; 7 (c) availability of child care for non-traditional work hours; 8 (d) whether parents are voluntarily leaving the workforce due to lack 9 of affordable or accessible child care, and the demographic information 10 of such parents; 11 (e) whether employers have identified lack of child care as a reason 12 for a shortage of a qualified workforce; 13 (f) the impact of child care, or lack thereof, on economic development 14 throughout the state; 15 (g) varying levels of quality of care throughout the state; 16 (h) ways to address concerns identified in paragraphs (a) through (g) 17 of this subdivision; and 18 (i) anything else the taskforce deems necessary. 19 4. The taskforce shall report its findings and recommendations in 20 accordance with subdivision three of this section to the speaker of the 21 assembly and the temporary president of the senate no later than Decem- 22 ber thirty-first, two thousand seventeen, and annually thereafter. 23 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.