Bill Text: TX HB680 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to the powers and duties of the Texas Workforce Commission and local workforce development boards regarding the provision of child care.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-06-14 - Effective on 9/1/19 [HB680 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HB680-Enrolled.html
H.B. No. 680 |
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relating to the powers and duties of the Texas Workforce Commission | ||
and local workforce development boards regarding the provision of | ||
child care. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 2308.317, Government Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (e) to read as follows: | ||
(e) Each board shall, to the extent practicable, ensure that | ||
any professional development for child care providers, directors, | ||
and employees funded under Subsection (a): | ||
(1) can be used toward requirements for a credential, | ||
certification, or degree program; and | ||
(2) meets the professional development requirements | ||
of the Texas Rising Star Program. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 302.0042, Labor Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read | ||
as follows: | ||
(b) The commission's evaluation must assess: | ||
(1) the use of current federal child care funds by each | ||
local workforce development board; | ||
(2) the ability of each local workforce development | ||
board to meet child care performance measures; | ||
(3) the average cost of child care in each local | ||
workforce development area; | ||
(4) the average monthly price charged by child care | ||
providers for full-day child care in each local workforce | ||
development area as stated in the market rate survey conducted | ||
under 45 C.F.R. Section 98.45(c); | ||
(5) the average monthly price charged by quality child | ||
care providers for full-day child care in each local workforce | ||
development area; | ||
(6) the poverty rate of each local workforce | ||
development area compared to the state's poverty rate; | ||
(7) [ |
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child care in each local workforce development area; [ |
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(8) [ |
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participants in the child-care subsidy program out of the total | ||
number of children enrolled with a provider on a full-time basis | ||
categorized by age of the child for each provider [ |
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development area that is certified as a 2-star, 3-star, or 4-star | ||
provider in the Texas Rising Star Program or that does not | ||
participate in the Texas Rising Star Program; | ||
(9) the total number of child care providers | ||
participating in the Texas Rising Star Program in each local | ||
workforce development area and the number of 2-star, 3-star, and | ||
4-star rated child care providers in the local workforce | ||
development area; | ||
(10) the number of child care providers participating | ||
in the Texas Rising Star Program in each local workforce | ||
development area as a percentage of the total number of both | ||
subsidized child care providers and all child care providers in the | ||
local workforce development area; | ||
(11) the number of 2-star, 3-star, and 4-star rated | ||
child care providers in the local workforce development area as a | ||
percentage of the total number of both subsidized child care | ||
providers and all child care providers in the local workforce | ||
development area; | ||
(12) the total number of children enrolled in | ||
subsidized child care providers participating in the Texas Rising | ||
Star Program in each local workforce development area and the | ||
number of subsidized children enrolled in 2-star, 3-star, and | ||
4-star rated child care providers in the local workforce | ||
development area; and | ||
(13) the number of subsidized children enrolled in | ||
child care providers participating in the Texas Rising Star Program | ||
in each local workforce development area as a percentage of the | ||
total number of subsidized children enrolled in child care | ||
providers in the local workforce development area and the number of | ||
subsidized children enrolled in 2-star, 3-star, and 4-star rated | ||
child care providers in the local workforce development area as a | ||
percentage of the total number of subsidized children enrolled in | ||
child care providers in the local workforce development area. | ||
(c) For the purposes of evaluation under this section, the | ||
commission shall annually update the information described by | ||
Subsections (b)(7)-(13). | ||
(d) In this section, "quality child care provider" means a | ||
child care provider that: | ||
(1) participates in the commission's Texas Rising Star | ||
Program; or | ||
(2) is accredited by the National Early Childhood | ||
Program Accreditation Commission or the National Association for | ||
the Education of Young Children, or holds any other accreditation | ||
the commission determines meets the quality standards of the Texas | ||
Rising Star Program. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 302.0043, Labor Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (c-1) and amending Subsections (e) and (f) to | ||
read as follows: | ||
(c-1) The commission shall measure and evaluate the | ||
progress of the commission's child care program regarding: | ||
(1) coordination by the commission with the Texas | ||
Education Agency to assign a Public Education Information | ||
Management System (PEIMS) number to children younger than six years | ||
of age enrolled in the commission's child care program; | ||
(2) coordination with the Texas Education Agency, | ||
school districts, and open-enrollment charter schools on any | ||
prekindergarten quality improvement efforts; | ||
(3) efforts to increase coordination between | ||
participating providers in the commission's child care program, | ||
school districts, and open-enrollment charter schools; | ||
(4) facilitation of child care provider enrollment in | ||
the Texas Rising Star Program and progression of providers to the | ||
highest rating level in the program; and | ||
(5) development and implementation of rates and | ||
payments, as determined by local workforce development boards, to: | ||
(A) allow participating providers to provide | ||
high-quality child care; and | ||
(B) ensure that the commission meets performance | ||
measures established by the legislature for the average number of | ||
children served by the commission's child-care program per day. | ||
(e) The commission shall make the information collected by | ||
the commission and the commission's findings available to local | ||
workforce development boards, school districts, open-enrollment | ||
charter schools, and the public. | ||
(f) Not later than January 15 of each odd-numbered year, the | ||
commission shall report to the legislature regarding the | ||
commission's findings regarding the effectiveness of the | ||
commission's child care program. The report must: | ||
(1) include employment outcome information, | ||
disaggregated by local workforce development area, regarding | ||
parents receiving subsidized care under the program; [ |
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(2) identify multiyear trends in the information | ||
collected and analyzed by the commission under this section, | ||
including trends in the information for at least the five state | ||
fiscal years preceding the date of the report; | ||
(3) include information described by Sections | ||
302.0042(b)(9)-(13); | ||
(4) include a summary of the input obtained under | ||
Section 302.00435; and | ||
(5) include any recommendations for legislation or | ||
regulation, including regulatory recommendations for governmental | ||
bodies other than the commission, regarding the input obtained | ||
under Section 302.00435. | ||
SECTION 4. Section 302.00435, Labor Code, is amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
Sec. 302.00435. SUBSIDIZED CHILD CARE PROGRAM; INPUT | ||
POLICY. (a) The commission shall develop a policy for obtaining, | ||
through appropriate methods, input from interested parties | ||
regarding its subsidized child care program and for using that | ||
input in administering that program. | ||
(b) The policy developed under Subsection (a) must include | ||
methods for obtaining input from the Texas Education Agency, school | ||
districts, open-enrollment charter schools, subsidized child care | ||
providers, relevant businesses, and the public, regarding: | ||
(1) improving coordination between the subsidized | ||
child care program and prekindergarten programs; | ||
(2) increasing the quality of and access to the | ||
subsidized child care program; | ||
(3) existing health and safety rules and regulations | ||
that could be more efficient or less costly without reducing health | ||
and safety outcomes; and | ||
(4) the burdens relating to complying with existing | ||
regulations that could be mitigated, reduced, or eliminated while | ||
maintaining the intent, objective, or purpose of the underlying | ||
regulation. | ||
SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 302, Labor Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 302.0461 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 302.0461. CHILD CARE PROVIDER CONTRACT AGREEMENTS. | ||
(a) A local workforce development board may contract with child | ||
care providers operating in the board's area to provide subsidized | ||
child care services. The local workforce development board shall | ||
determine the number of places that the board reserves in the | ||
contract with a child care provider participating in the | ||
commission's subsidized child care program. | ||
(b) To be eligible for a contract under Subsection (a), a | ||
child care provider must: | ||
(1) be a Texas Rising Star Program provider with a | ||
three-star rating or higher; and | ||
(2) meet one of the following priorities of the | ||
commission: | ||
(A) be located in: | ||
(i) an area where the number of children | ||
younger than six years of age who have working parents is at least | ||
three times greater than the capacity of licensed child care | ||
providers in the area; or | ||
(ii) an area determined by the commission | ||
to be underserved with respect to child care providers; | ||
(B) have a partnership with a school district to | ||
provide a prekindergarten program; | ||
(C) have a partnership with the Early Head Start | ||
or Head Start Program; | ||
(D) increase the number of places reserved for | ||
infants and toddlers by high-quality child care providers; or | ||
(E) satisfy a requirement in the local workforce | ||
development board's strategic plan. | ||
(c) Not later than six months after a local workforce | ||
development board enters into a contract under Subsection (a), the | ||
board shall submit a report to the commission evaluating the | ||
contract to determine its effect on: | ||
(1) the financial stability of the child care provider | ||
participating in the contract; | ||
(2) the availability of high-quality child care | ||
options for participants in the commission's subsidized child care | ||
program in the workforce development area; | ||
(3) the number of high-quality child care providers in | ||
any part of the workforce development area with a high | ||
concentration of families with a need for child care; and | ||
(4) the percentage of children participating in the | ||
commission's subsidized child care program at each Texas Rising | ||
Star Program provider in the local workforce development area. | ||
(d) The commission shall determine the information that | ||
must be included in the report required by Subsection (c). A local | ||
workforce development board shall update the report required by | ||
Subsection (c) every six months from the date the board submits its | ||
initial report to the commission. | ||
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. | ||
______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
I certify that H.B. No. 680 was passed by the House on April | ||
24, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 84, Nays 61, 2 present, not | ||
voting; that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. No. | ||
680 on May 24, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 91, Nays 49, 2 | ||
present, not voting; and that the House adopted H.C.R. No. 182 | ||
authorizing certain corrections in H.B. No. 680 on May 24, 2019, by | ||
the following vote: Yeas 141, Nays 0, 2 present, not voting. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||
I certify that H.B. No. 680 was passed by the Senate, with | ||
amendments, on May 20, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 22, Nays | ||
9; and that the Senate adopted H.C.R. No. 182 authorizing certain | ||
corrections in H.B. No. 680 on May 26, 2019, by the following vote: | ||
Yeas 31, Nays 0. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
APPROVED: __________________ | ||
Date | ||
__________________ | ||
Governor |