As we head toward the finish line of the 2022 New York State Legislative Session, Schuyler Center’s policy team is focused on passage of the crucial legislation outlined below, in the areas of Child Care, Child Welfare, Health, and Child Poverty.
2022 End of Session Policy Priorities (PDF)
Child Care
A.7661 (Hevesi)/S.6655-A (Brisport) — Decoupling child care subsidies from parents’ hours of work — Offers enhanced early education opportunities for children, provides stable, reliable child care for families, and more stability for providers, by allowing parents who work part-time or fluctuating hours access to full-time child care assistance.
A.7095 (Clark)/S.6077-A (Brisport) — Child Care Pay Rate Differential — Requires all districts to pay a 15% differential for providing care to children from families experiencing homelessness and for children who need care during non-traditional hours (evenings, nights, and weekends).
__(Cruz)/S.8962 (Brisport) — Removing barriers to access to child care assistance for immigrant and other families — Eliminates immigration status and burdensome work documentation requirements to ensure more equitable access to child care assistance for low-income New York families. There are approximately 31,000 undocumented children under the age of 13 in New York State who are categorically excluded from the child care subsidy system due to their immigration status. In addition, tens of thousands more families struggle to access child care subsidies because they work in the informal or gig economy, making it difficult to meet work documentation requirements.
__(Clark)/S.9010 (Ramos) — Eliminating minimum earnings and minimum hours of work requirements for child care subsidies — At present, families can be denied eligibility for child care subsidies because they earn too little, or have had their work hours cut back, disproportionately harming some families who need child care the most, particularly for parents and families who work unpredictable hours. This bill would eliminate these requirements, leading to more equitable access to child care, and more stability for children.
A.10209 (Lunsford)/S.9029 (Ramos) — 24-Month Eligibility Option — Permits local social service districts to authorize families to receive child care assistance for up to 24 months between eligibility determinations, eliminating unnecessary barriers to access for families, and administrative burdens for counties.
Automatic Market Rate Increases — Requires social service districts to automatically raise child care provider rates to the new market rate whenever the state sets a new market rate.
Enrollment-based reimbursement — Shifts provider reimbursement for children receiving child care subsidies from an attendance-based model to an enrollment-based approach.
A.2150-A (Rosenthal)/S.6900 (Brisport) — Brendan’s Law — Requires child care providers and certain other facilities installing new or replacement window coverings to install cordless blinds to prevent the possibility of serious harm to young children.
A.7560-B (Rosenthal)/S.6287-B (Mannion) — Elizabeth’s Law — Requires the provision of informational materials to child care providers and certain physicians regarding the impacts and dangers of congenital cytomegalovirus infection.
Child Welfare
A.1777-B (Hevesi)/A.5419-B (Brisport) — Modernize the child welfare housing subsidy — Updates the child welfare preventive services housing subsidy from $300 a month, which has not changed since 1988, to $725 a month with annual increases based on calculations tied to inflation. It also allows the subsidy to be offered to youth exiting foster care up to age 24; the current subsidy is only offered to youth ages 18 to 21.
Health
A.9475 (Reyes)/S.8639 (Brouk) — Reimbursement for early and periodic screening, diagnosis and treatment — Directs the NYS Department of Health to submit a Medicaid State Plan Amendment (SPA) allowing for additional reimbursement to schools for essential mental, behavioral, and physical health services.
A.9294 (Gottfried)/S.8438 (Rivera) — Medical assistance eligibility of infants up to the age of three years — Ensures that babies eligible for Medicaid coverage at birth continue to receive coverage until they reach age three.
A.5035-A (Solages)/S.533-A (Persaud) — Mandatory coverage of hearing-aids for children by insurers and other organizations — Requires reasonable medical insurance reimbursement for the costs of medically prescribed hearing aids for children under the age of 18.
A.9567-A (Buttenschon)/S.8326-B (Mannion) — Creates an independent ombuds program for people with developmental disabilities
Child Poverty
A.3451-B(Solages)/S.63-B (Persaud) — Diaper Allowance — Provides for an allowance for diapers for families with children under the age of two who are receiving public assistance. For many families, a diaper allowance will save them from having to choose between keeping their baby healthy and comfortable, and falling deeper into economic insecurity or poverty.
Convene the Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council — New York enacted the Child Poverty Reduction Act on February 28, 2022. The deadlines to appoint members of the Child Poverty Reduction Council and convene the Council have passed (April 15 and May 1, respectively). The Governor, Senate Leader, and Assembly Speaker must act now to empanel the Advisory Council and start working with intention to reduce child poverty in New York.
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