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H 7319Children

Human Services - The Rhode Island Works Program

This bill makes childcare free for eligible childcare workers and expands childcare help for parents attending public colleges.

Held for study
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 23, 2026Committee House Finance

Plain-English Summary

This bill amends the Rhode Island Works Program to permanently provide free childcare assistance to eligible childcare educators and staff who work at least twenty hours a week in licensed facilities. It removes a previous expiration date and changes the income eligibility requirement for these workers from a federal poverty guideline to 85% of the state median income, classifying them as a "protected population" with no copayments. Additionally, it increases the income threshold for families to receive childcare assistance while attending a Rhode Island public institution of higher education starting in 2025.

For younger readers

This new law helps people who work at daycares and preschools by paying for someone to watch their own children while they are at work. Before, this help was going to end in a few years, but now it will stay forever. It also changes the rules so these workers don't have to pay any money at all for their kids' care if they make under a certain amount. Also, it helps moms and dads who are going to college in Rhode Island pay for babysitters so they can go to their classes.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Childcare educatorsChildcare staffLicensed childcare centersParents in higher educationLow-income families
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Significantly supports the "care economy" workforce, which is historically underpaid and predominantly female, by eliminating childcare costs for these workers.
  • Expands access to higher education for low-income parents by raising the income eligibility threshold for childcare assistance, facilitating social mobility.
  • Removes the "cliff effect" of copayments for childcare staff by categorizing them as a protected population with zero copay, ensuring they keep more of their earnings.
  • The legislation maintains work requirements (20 hours per week) to receive benefits, which can exclude those struggling to find consistent hours or those unable to work due to other barriers.
  • While it subsidizes costs, it does not mandate higher wages for childcare workers directly, potentially allowing employers to keep wages low because the state is subsidizing the employees' personal costs.
  • Eligibility is still means-tested (85% of state median income) rather than being a universal public good, leaving some middle-class families without support.
For Conservatives
  • Supports private businesses in the childcare sector by helping them recruit and retain staff through state-sponsored benefits rather than employer mandates.
  • Maintains work requirements (20 hours per week) ensuring that government assistance is directed only toward productive members of the workforce.
  • Encourages self-improvement and workforce development by supporting parents who are actively enrolled in higher education institutions.
  • Expands the welfare state by making a temporary pilot program permanent and increasing income eligibility thresholds, leading to higher long-term government spending.
  • Eliminates copayments for a specific class of workers, removing "skin in the game" and shifting the full financial burden to taxpayers.
  • Creates a "protected population" status based on profession, which could be viewed as the government picking winners and losers in the labor market.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 7 additions · 4 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 40-5.2-20 of the General Laws in Chapter 40-5.2 entitled "The Rhode Island Works Program" is hereby amended to read as follows: 40-5.2-20. Childcare assistance — Families or assistance units eligible.

(a) The department shall provide appropriate child care to every participant who is eligible for cash assistance and who requires child care in order to meet the work requirements in accordance with this chapter.

(b) Low-income child care. The department shall provide child care to all other working families with incomes at or below two hundred sixty-one percent (261%) of the federal poverty level if, and to the extent, these other families require child care in order to work at paid employment as defined in the department’s rules and regulations. The department shall also provide child care to families with incomes below two hundred sixty-one percent (261%) of the federal poverty level if, and to the extent, these families require child care to participate on a short-term basis, as defined in the department’s rules and regulations, in training, apprenticeship, internship, on-the-job training, work experience, work immersion, or other job-readiness/job-attachment program sponsored or funded by the human resource investment council (governor’s workforce board) or state agencies that are part of the coordinated program system pursuant to § 42-102-11. Effective from January 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022, the department shall also provide childcare assistance to families with incomes below one hundred eighty percent (180%) of the federal poverty level when such assistance is necessary for a member of these families to enroll or maintain enrollment in a Rhode Island public institution of higher education provided that eligibility to receive funding is capped when expenditures reach $200,000 for this provision. Effective July 1, 2022 through December 31, 2024, the department shall also provide childcare assistance to families with incomes below two hundred percent (200%) of the federal poverty level when such assistance is necessary for a member of these families to enroll or maintain enrollment in a Rhode Island public institution of higher education. Effective January 1, 2025, the department shall also provide childcare assistance to families with incomes below two hundred sixty-one percent (261%) of the federal poverty level when such assistance is necessary for a member of these families to enroll or maintain enrollment in a Rhode Island public institution of higher education.

(c) No family/assistance unit shall be eligible for childcare assistance under this chapter if the combined value of its liquid resources exceeds one million dollars ($1,000,000), which corresponds to the amount permitted by the federal government under the state plan and set forth in the administrative rulemaking process by the department. Liquid resources are defined as any interest(s) in property in the form of cash or other financial instruments or accounts that are readily convertible to cash or cash equivalents. These include, but are not limited to: cash, bank, credit union, or other financial institution savings, checking, and money market accounts; certificates of deposit or other time deposits; stocks; bonds; mutual funds; and other similar financial instruments or accounts. These do not include educational savings accounts, plans, or programs; retirement accounts, plans, or programs; or accounts held jointly with another adult, not including a spouse. The department is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to determine the ownership and source of the funds in the joint account.

(d) As a condition of eligibility for childcare assistance under this chapter, the parent or caretaker relative of the family must consent to, and must cooperate with, the department in establishing paternity, and in establishing and/or enforcing child support and medical support orders for any children in the family receiving appropriate child care under this section in accordance with the applicable sections of title 15, as amended, unless the parent or caretaker relative is found to have good cause for refusing to comply with the requirements of this subsection.

(e) For purposes of this section, “appropriate child care” means child care, including infant, toddler, preschool, nursery school, and school-age, that is provided by a person or organization qualified, approved, and authorized to provide the care by the state agency or agencies designated to make the determinations in accordance with the provisions set forth herein. (f)(1) Families with incomes below one hundred percent (100%) of the applicable federal poverty level guidelines shall be provided with free child care. Families with incomes greater than one hundred percent (100%) and less than two hundred percent (200%) of the applicable federal poverty guideline shall be required to pay for some portion of the child care they receive, according to a sliding-fee scale adopted by the department in the department’s rules, not to exceed seven percent (7%) of income as defined in subsection (h) of this section.

(2) Families who are receiving childcare assistance and who become ineligible for childcare assistance as a result of their incomes exceeding two hundred sixty-one percent (261%) of the applicable federal poverty guidelines shall continue to be eligible for childcare assistance until their incomes exceed three hundred percent (300%) of the applicable federal poverty guidelines. To be eligible, the families must continue to pay for some portion of the child care they receive, as indicated in a sliding-fee scale adopted in the department’s rules, not to exceed seven percent (7%) of income as defined in subsection (h) of this section, and in accordance with all other eligibility standards.

(g) In determining the type of child care to be provided to a family, the department shall take into account the cost of available childcare options; the suitability of the type of care available for the child; and the parent’s preference as to the type of child care.

(h) For purposes of this section, “income” for families receiving cash assistance under § 40-5.2-11 means gross, earned income and unearned income, subject to the income exclusions in §§ 40-5.2-10(g)(2) and 40-5.2-10(g)(3), and income for other families shall mean gross, earned and unearned income as determined by departmental regulations.

(i) The caseload estimating conference established by chapter 17 of title 35 shall forecast the expenditures for child care in accordance with the provisions of § 35-17-1.

(j) In determining eligibility for childcare assistance for children of members of reserve components called to active duty during a time of conflict, the department shall freeze the family composition and the family income of the reserve component member as it was in the month prior to the month of leaving for active duty. This shall continue until the individual is officially discharged from active duty.

(k) Effective from August 1, 2023, through July 31, 2028, the The department shall provide funding for child care for eligible childcare educators, and childcare staff, who work at least twenty

(20) hours a week in licensed childcare centers and licensed family childcare homes as defined in the department’s rules and regulations. Eligibility is limited to qualifying childcare educators and childcare staff with family incomes up to three hundred percent (300%) of the applicable federal poverty guidelines and for child care assistance for these children will fall under the federal Child Care Development Funds definition of a “protected population” and would be determined on a case-by-case basis by the department using the affordability guideline of eighty-five (85%) percent of state median income. Families determined eligible by the department under this “protected population” category will have no copayments. Qualifying participants may select the childcare center or family childcare home for their children. The department shall promulgate regulations necessary to implement this section, and will collect applicant and participant data to report estimated demand for state-funded child care for eligible childcare educators and childcare staff. The report shall be due annually to the governor and the general assembly by November 1.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.