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DHS Child Care Assistance Program
Facts for Parents
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DHS assists working families earning up to 180% of the federal poverty level, (see below for eligible
incomes) by helping them pay for the high
cost of quality child care through full or partial payments to
providers chosen by the family. You do not have to be a DHS Family
Independence Program participant or be receiving any other state aid
to qualify for child-care assistance..
For eligibility information, or an application for
assistance, please
call the DHS Info Line at 401-462-5300 & TTY/Hearing Impaired
401-462-3363.
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Assistance is based primarily on the income of
working families. The
hours that parents are involved in work or an approved training or
education experience are also a factor. Depending upon their income
and family size,
families may be responsible for co-payments.
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Child-care assistance is guaranteed to all
income eligible working families
under the Family Independence Act which went into effect May 1,
1997.
There are no waiting lists for subsidies and no time limits on
assistance.
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Incomes qualifying for child-care subsidies
(and co-payment ranges) include:
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Family of two: annual income up to $24,642
(Weekly Co-Payment = $32 - $38);
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Family of three: annual income up to $30,906
(Weekly Co-Payment = $40 - $48);
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Family of four: annual income up to $37,170
(Weekly Co-Payment = $48 - $57);
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Family of five: annual income up to $43,434
(Weekly Co-Payment = $56 - $67);
and
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Family of six: annual income up to $49,698
(Weekly Co-Payment = $64 - $76).
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Parents choose their provider and may use more
than one provider to
meet their child-care needs. Options for care are:
-
enrollment in a licensed child-care center
or after-school program;
-
enrollment in a certified family child-care
home;
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care by an approved relative of the child in
the relative’s home; or
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care by an approved provider selected by the
family in the child’s home.
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Approximately 80% of care subsidized by DHS
takes place in
child-care centers and after-school programs licensed by the
Department
of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) or in family child-care homes
certified by DCYF.
For information on choosing quality care for your
children, or for a listing of
licensed or certified providers near your home or workplace, please call
OPTIONS FOR WORKING PARENTS at 401-946-2300 or
1-800-516-2055 or visit the OPTIONS FOR WORKING PARENTS website by clicking
here.
(OPTIONS FOR WORKING PARENTS is funded by
DHS)
Facts for Businesses
Quality child care is of value not only to families
but to employers of working parents. When employees can depend on
quality, accessible, affordable child care, they have the peace of mind
that allows them to be present, focused, and productive in the work
place. In today’s tight job market, employers who create flexible,
"family-friendly" policies and help parents find and afford reliable,
high quality child care have a
distinct advantage in hiring and maintaining a committed and capable
workforce.
Employers can help their employees find quality
child care by providing
resource and referral information to employees on a regular basis.
OPTIONS FOR WORKING PARENTS, a DHS-funded program, provides families
with information on certified and licensed child-care programs and also
provides resource and referral services to employers. OPTIONS FOR
WORKING PARENTS can help businesses, regardless of size, explore a
wide range of child-care options and family friendly policies including
on-site child care, consortium child-care arrangements, tax credits, and
flexible benefits accounts. OPTIONS can also help businesses
assess whether or not a child-care benefit is appropriate for their
workplace.
OPTIONS sponsors a Business and Child Care
Round Table group which meets regularly to discuss critical issues in
child care and the role of business in supporting this important
resource for working families.
For information on child care resource and referral, or for services for
businesses interested in supporting quality child care for working
parents, please call OPTIONS FOR WORKING PARENTS at
401-946-2300 or 1-800-516-2055 or visit the OPTIONS FOR
WORKING PARENTS website by clicking
here.
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