Obviously, the state of California is in financial disarray. If the state were a person, it would be talking to a credit counselor right now; it would be cutting up its credit cards, staying out of the mall and looking for a second job. It would be trying to find more tips for lowering its expenses and increasing its revenues. It would not be tyring to get a bus ticket to Vegas or Atlantic City in hopes of winning big to pay off its debt. Anyway.....
Patty Berg chaired the committee hearing on three major issues:
- Funding Stage 2 CalWORKs Child Care
- The Regional Market Rate (RMR)
- The Family Fee Schedule
A primer on the issues:
Stage 2 Child Care is the second phase of the child care subsidy path designed to move families off of welfare and into the workforce. Once families enter Stage 2, they are closer to finishing the path to economic self-sufficiency. Across the state, Stage 2 numbers have been increasing, as families really try and work to get on their feet.
The RMR is the payment schedule for child care providers. The rates are based on hours of care, county and demographics, and type of care provided. When rates go up, child care providers are able to offer care, earn a living wage and run a competitive business. When rates go down, child care providers have to make decisions about how to stay open - sometimes this means raising rates for parents, sometimes this means cutting services.
The family fee schedule is the payment schedule for families. It lays out how much families pay, and when they start to pay based on their income.
So, what happened at the hearing???
The committee voted to reject the Governor’s Proposal to Cut Child Care by 6.4%-----this means that they voted against cutting the 18,000 existing child care slots!!!
The committee voted to support an increase of $16.4 million to fully fund Stage 2!!!---many child care agencies had to stop enrolling families in Stage 2 because they didn’t have enough $$$. This $$$ will meet the current year needs.
The committee voted to reject the Governor’s Proposal to reduce the Regional Market Rate to 75%-----if the subcommittee had supported this proposal, some child care centers would have to close because they couldn't’t afford to serve families with child care subsidies. If centers stayed open, it could have made family/parent co-payments go up!!!
The committee voted to support the freeze to the State Median Income for 2008-09 but will ensure that any new fee schedule will not charge fees to families who make below 40% of SMI!!!
· In the May Revise, Dept of Finance wanted to lower the % of when fees begin and the Dept of Education said absolutely not!
· While this is a bitter pill for working poor families and advocates to swallow, it is important to think about the big picture. The big picture goes back to beginning of this post and the credit counseling analogy: the state is facing a $17 Billion deficit, so many other social services might get cut.
There is much work ahead. There are more hearings scheduled and we need to stay informed about what is ahead of us and how we can impact some change. As this Newsweek article shows, there are some other states in a pickle, although thanks to the Terminator, we are in probably the worst predictament.
Once again, it is probably important to recognize a few materials out there that really speak to the issues faced by Community Voices members
Waging a Living is a very good documentary that follows the lives of four families struggling to pay for child care and survive. If you can watch the trailer here, please click. The production also convened a group of experts to talk about the obstacles working poor families face. Read the transcripts.
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