Westchester County continues to be a statewide leader in providing affordable child care with one of the most reasonable child care subsidy family share rates (15% in 2011) in New York.  Eligibility for low income child care remains at up to 200% of the federal poverty level.   Although the Westchester Child Care Scholarship Program for families just over Title XX eligibility was not reinstated in 2011, the Council assisted working families in paying for regulated child care through the new Future Leaders Scholarship Program, part of the Sally Zeigler Fund.   In late 2011, the Council was delighted to announce the new LIKE Awards (Lanza Investment in Kid’s Early Education), child care scholarships funded by the Lanza Family Foundation.
The Council was proud to act as the Lead Agency for the Westchester field test of QUALITYstarsNY, the emerging quality rating improvement system in New York.   To emphasize the Council’s commitment to improving child care quality, the Board of Directors established the requirement that only regulated child care providers and programs that had participated in the Council’s quality improvement activities would be eligible locations for its child care scholarships.    Meanwhile, the Council continued to urge the child care community to prepare for QUALITYstarsNY and offered new programs and workshops to support that effort.

As every level of government faces increased demands and shrinking resources, the Council calls on parents, early care and learning professionals, community leaders and others to stay informed and engaged as vocal supporters of more and more strategic investments in early learning.

WESTCHESTER COUNTY

Child Care Subsidy Funding
Although the 2011 budget included Title XX funding, no new applications were approved by the Westchester County Department of Social Services; families in receipt of the low income subsidy whose income moved into Title XX area continued to receive subsidy throughout the year.  And the low income child care subsidy was available for families who met the program and financial eligibility requirements.  The family share payment was at 15%, one of the lowest levels in New York.

Anticipating child care reductions in the County Executive’s proposed budget for 2012, the Council worked throughout the year with child care programs/providers and the Westchester Children’s Association, to build the case for child care as a priority not only for children and working parents but also the health of the regional economy.    When it was released in November, the proposed budget did indeed reduce the County’s child care spending and threatened to increase the family share to 35%, the highest level allowed by state and federal regulation.

Following an outpouring of support for child care at three County budget hearings held by the Board of Legislators, the Board ultimately sent a budget to the County Executive with $4.3 million of additional child care funding - $3.5 for low income and $800,000 for Title XX child care subsidy.  The County Executive vetoed both items.    By a vote of 12 to 5, the Board of Legislators rejected the child care vetoes, and restored $4.3 million to the Department of Social Services child care budget.

NEW YORK STATE

The Council is a member of Winning Beginning NY, a statewide coalition working to make investment in quality early care and learning a top public priority in New York.    Winning Beginning NY is co-convened by the Center for Children's Initiatives, the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy, the Early Care & Learning Council, and the New York State Association for the Education of Young Children.
The Coalition’s 2012 Executive Agenda calls for:

• $20 million for QUALITYstarsNY, our state’s quality rating improvement system
• Restoration of $37 million for child care subsidies and a 10% in child care spending
• A minimum of $384.3 million to maintain Pre-K for almost 99,000 children
• Adequate funding for the K-12 system so Kindergarten access won’t be endangered
• $30.3 million for evidence-based home visiting programs
• Restoration of Early Intervention to 2010-2011 levels of $230 million
• Restoration of Advantage Afterschool to 2010-2011 levels of $22.5 million

For the full Agenda and background on the Coalition’s positions, go to http://winningbeginningny.org/advocacy/

Winning Beginning NY is an active and eloquent voice on behalf of a stronger early care and education system in New York.   We urge you to support their work by becoming a member and visiting their website often for updates:  http://winningbeginningny.org/

Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council
Governor Andrew Cuomo established 10 Regional Councils in 2011 as the “cornerstone of his economic development agenda” for the purpose of achieving economic growth, creating jobs and conveying the message that New York State is “Open For Business”.    Westchester was included as one of seven counties encompassed by the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council, charged with issuing a strategic plan for long-term, sustainable regional economic growth.    Through the Council’s public testimony and submission of evidence documenting the strong link between child care access and quality to existing workforce productivity and future workforce skill development, child care was added to the Mid-Hudson Council’s strategic plan as part of Strategy VII:  Enhance the region’s talent pipeline through its colleges and universities, One-Stop Career Centers, BOCES, school systems, public libraries and library systems, and child care system. Support investments that build long-term strategies for growth as well as short-term responses to emerging needs.
The Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council’s recognition of accessible, quality child care as integral to robust economic development is welcome.   The Council hopes to build on this opportunity to broaden the business community’s support for a high quality early care and education system in Westchester.  

To learn more about the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council, visit http://nyworks.ny.gov/content/mid-hudson.  

To see the full Strategic Plan, go to http://nyworks.ny.gov/themes/nyopenrc

FEDERAL

The Council is a member of NACCRRA, the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, which represents over 700 CCRRs (child care resource and referral agencies) across the nation.   NACCRRA has developed an ambitious policy agenda focused on strengthening the quality of child care in the United States.   To view the full agenda, please go to http://www.naccrra.org/policy/

NACCRRA’s top priority is the reauthorization of the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) the primary federal program for child care assistance for families and quality improvement initiatives.   CCDBG was enacted 20 years ago and NACCRRA is determined not only to secure increased funding but also the inclusion of higher standards such as comprehensive background checks for paid child care for unrelated children; 40 hours of pre-service training; hearings on child care safety, affordability, quality; the establishment of quality child care as a goal for any related federal funding, etc. 

Given the state of the national economy and the discord in the Congress, NACCRRA will need tremendous and passionate advocacy to secure CCDBG reauthorization as they have outlined.  Their vision shifts CCDBG from a funding stream with few parameters to a funding stream with clear incentives for states to improve child care quality by documenting measurable outcomes.   This reauthorization is long overdue and must not be deferred again.   

For more information on NACCRRA’s CCDBG Reauthorization Campaign, go to http://www.naccrra.org/policy/

For more information on NACCRRA’s policy positions and advocacy campaigns, visit http://www.naccrra.org/policy/.

For More National News
To follow early care and education funding and policy at the national level, in addition to NACCRRA, also visit the National Women’s Law Center at www.nwlc.org and the Center forLaw and Social Policy at www.clasp.org.