Fate of child care aid uncertain in state budget

Help paying for child care could continue to evade low-income families.

As the state legislature considers differences between the recently approved House and Senate budgets, the fate of provisions concerning subsidies for child care hangs in the balance.

For most parents, child care subsidies pay for about 81 percent of the total cost of care, according to Gaston’s Department of Health and Human Services. The remaining balance is paid by parents or guardians. The subsidized portion could determine whether a parent can afford child care at all, according to Rob Thompson, the policy director for N.C. Child, a Raleigh-based children’s advocacy group.

“It’s important we take steps to make sure (children) get good after-school education or child care while their parents go to work,” he said.

In October, changes made by the state legislature reduced the number of children eligible for subsidies. An estimated 220 of Gaston’s 1,727 children who received child care aid lost eligibility this year, according to Gaston’s Department of Health and Human Services.

The majority of the income changes affected school-age children, said Wanda Whetstine, Child Care Coordinator for the Social Services Division of Gaston’s Department of Health and Human Services. That freed up additional dollars to serve more preschool children, according to Whetstine.

Kevin Campbell owns Smart Kids' Child Development Center in Gastonia. Following the eligibility changes, he said, he had to shutter his after-school program.

“We had school-age children that were receiving subsidies and when they lost their voucher we decided we didn’t have enough children left to make up a classroom,” he said. “A lot of child care providers support the House budget because that would help a lot of families get reinstated.”

Changes to income eligibility meant children whose families earn more than $31,000 to $48,000, depending on the child’s age, are disqualified. The state also began counting the income of grandparents and other caretakers against the child’s eligibility for aid. Another provision eliminated pro-rated fees for parents who receive part-time child care.

The House budget would reinstate the pro-rated parent fees and repeal the new definition of family income. It would also raise the income eligibility for children up to 8 years old.

The Senate budget is more restrictive, rolling back only the definition of family income. Thompson hopes the final budget will contain the House provisions for child-care subsidies.

“One thing we are doing is trying to make sure that legislators understand the impact on the community they live in,” he said.

Gaston’s Department of Health and Human Services received about $7 million to provide child-care aid this year. The county has a waiting list of families applying for the subsidies.

The legislature is expected to submit a final budget to Gov. Pat McCrory by June 30.

You can reach Eric Wildstein at 704-869-1828 or Twitter.com/TheGazetteEric.

Big bills

$142 a week -The average cost for child care for a preschool child

$110 a week - The average cost for summer child care for full-time school age child

$85 a week - The average cost for after-school child care

*Averages provided by the Gaston Department of Health and Human Services. The cost of child care depends on the age of child and the child care center’s star rating.