BILL NUMBER:  S1289

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act directing the commissioner of the office of
children and family services to conduct a study to evaluate the costs
associated with the provision of child day care services

 PURPOSE :

To understand the actual cost of providing child day care in New York
State, as well as the cost of child day care as it relates to quality
of care.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 of this bill requires the Commissioner of the Office of
Children and Family services shall contract with an external research
organization to conduct a child care cost study to evaluate the cost
of providing child day care in New York State. The study shall also
evaluate the cost of the child day care related to each level of
rating under the Quality Stars NY Initiative.

(a) The type of settings included in the study shall be subject to
funds available but include, at a minimum, child care day care
centers, group family day care homes and family day care homes.

(b) The methodology used in the study shall take into account factors
              

influencing costs, including but not limited to: geographical region,
type of setting, age of children served, qualifications of staff,
educational curriculum, the number of children served and staff to
child ratios.

(c) The data collected shall provide information on the breakdown of
all sources of revenue and personnel and non-personnel expenses, for
each type of child day care program setting included in the study. The
Commissioner of the Office of Children and Family Service s shall
submit a report detailing the findings of the child day care cost
study to the Governor, the Temporary President of the Senate, the
Speaker of the Assembly, the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on
Children and Families and the Chairperson of the Assembly Committee on
Children and Families on or before July 1, 2018.

Section 2 of this act shall take effect immediately.

 JUSTIFICATION :

State and Federal law require the level of child care assistance a
family receives be adequate to ensure equal access to child care as it
relates to those families who are not receiving subsidies.  Every two
years, the Office of Children and Family Services contracts with a
market rate firm to conduct a survey of regulated child care
providers.

The payment rate is then set at the 75th percentile of the market,
based on the data collected, which is the level of payment the Federal
government has determined is sufficient to provide equal access.
Despite this process, some child care providers have expressed that
the results of the market rate survey does not adequately represent
the real cost of providing child care.

The State relies on this tool to set subsidy levels, and it is
critical that the rate reflect the true cost of care in order to
ensure that payment rates are sufficient. The study required by this
bill will evaluate the actual cost of providing child care, outside
the parameters of the market rates survey. Such information will help
guide the State in determining whether the rates set are sufficient in

meeting the goal of equal access for low-income earning families, as
required by State and Federal law.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2015-16: S.7404/A.9638(Jaffee)

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

To be determined.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.