S-4379.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6726

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1998 Regular Session

By Senators Brown, Patterson and Kohl

Read first time 01/29/98.  Referred to Committee on Human Services & Corrections.

Requiring the department of social and health services to administer a child care program to serve low-income families.

    AN ACT Relating to child care; adding new sections to chapter 74.12 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  The legislature finds that adequate child care reimbursement rates are critical to the effort to maintain a child care strategy that achieves the dual goals of moving families from welfare to work, and promoting the social, intellectual, and physical well-being of children.

    Adequate reimbursement rates allow providers to offer high quality and safe services essential to a child's development and to stimulate a greater supply of providers, which will increase choice, quality, safety, and access.

    The legislature also finds that access to child care during nonstandard work hours and weekends is critical to helping low-income families achieve economic independence.  Higher reimbursement rates to providers of this care will increase the availability of this care, expand the opportunity for low-income families to find and maintain jobs, and promote the social and intellectual development of children.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:

    The department shall administer a single, integrated child care program to serve families with incomes up to one hundred seventy-five percent of the federal poverty level.  To establish child care reimbursement rates, the department shall conduct a biennial survey of licensed child care centers and family child care providers to determine the rates paid for child care at licensed facilities.  The child care program established in this section shall provide payments for child care at a level at least equal to the seventy-fifth percentile of the rates determined as a result of the biennial surveys required in this section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.  A new section is added to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:

    The department shall provide payments that are at least ten percent higher than the seventy-fifth percentile of rates paid to licensed child care centers and family child care providers when they provide these services on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, and between the hours of six o'clock p.m. and six o'clock a.m., Monday through Friday.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4.  A new section is added to chapter 74.12 RCW to read as follows:

    The department shall provide the payments required by sections 2 and 3 of this act by July 1, 1999.

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