Revise income eligibility for publicly funded child care

As Introduced

136th
General Assembly

Regular
Session
H. B. No. 827

2025-2026

Representatives Tims, Lett

Cosponsors: Representatives
Abdullahi, Brennan, Brewer, Brownlee, Glassburn, McNally, Miller, J.,
Piccolantonio, Rader, Rogers, Sims, Synenberg, Troy, White, E.

To
amend sections 5104.34 and 5104.38 of the Revised Code
to
revise the law governing income eligibility for publicly funded child
care.

BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section
1.
That
sections 5104.34 and 5104.38 of the Revised Code be amended to read
as follows:

Sec.
5104.34.
(A)(1)
Each county department of job and family services shall implement
procedures for making determinations of eligibility for publicly
funded child care. Under those procedures, the eligibility
determination for each applicant shall be made no later than thirty
calendar days from the date the county department receives a
completed application for publicly funded child care. Each applicant
shall be notified promptly of the results of the eligibility
determination. An applicant aggrieved by a decision or delay in
making an eligibility determination may appeal the decision or delay
to the department of children and youth in accordance with section
5101.35 of the Revised Code. The due process rights of applicants
shall be protected.

To
the extent permitted by federal law, the county department may make
all determinations of eligibility for publicly funded child care, may
contract with child care providers or child care resource and
referral service organizations for the providers or resource and
referral service organizations to make all or any part of the
determinations, and may contract with child care providers or child
care resource and referral service organizations for the providers or
resource and referral service organizations to collect specified
information for use by the county department in making
determinations. If a county department contracts with a child care
provider or a child care resource and referral service organization
for eligibility determinations or for the collection of information,
the contract shall require the provider or resource and referral
service organization to make each eligibility determination no later
than thirty calendar days from the date the provider or resource and
referral organization receives a completed application that is the
basis of the determination and to collect and transmit all necessary
information to the county department within a period of time that
enables the county department to make each eligibility determination
no later than thirty days after the filing of the application that is
the basis of the determination.

The
county department may station employees of the department in various
locations throughout the county to collect information relevant to
applications for publicly funded child care and to make eligibility
determinations. The county department, child care provider, and child
care resource and referral service organization shall make each
determination of eligibility for publicly funded child care no later
than thirty days after the filing of the application that is the
basis of the determination, shall make each determination in
accordance with any relevant rules adopted pursuant to section
5104.38 of the Revised Code, and shall notify promptly each applicant
for publicly funded child care of the results of the determination of
the applicant's eligibility.

The
director of children and youth shall adopt rules in accordance with
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code for monitoring the eligibility
determination process. In accordance with those rules, the state
department shall monitor eligibility determinations made by county
departments of job and family services and shall direct any entity
that is not in compliance with this division or any rule adopted
under this division to implement corrective action specified by the
department.

(2)(a)
All eligibility determinations for publicly funded child care shall
be made in accordance with rules adopted pursuant to division (A) of
section 5104.38 of the Revised Code. Except as otherwise provided in
this section, all of the following apply:

(i)
Publicly funded child care may be provided only to eligible infants,
toddlers, preschool-age children, school-age children under age
thirteen, or children receiving special needs child care.

(ii)
For an applicant to be eligible for publicly funded child care, the
caretaker parent must be employed or participating in a program of
education or training for an amount of time reasonably related to the
time that the parent's children are receiving publicly funded child
care. This restriction does not apply to families whose children are
eligible for protective child care.

(iii)
The eligibility period for publicly funded child care shall be at
least twelve months.

(b)
If a caretaker parent who has been determined eligible to receive
publicly funded child care no longer meets the requirements of
division (A)(2)(a)(ii) of this section, the caretaker parent may
continue to receive publicly funded child care for a period of at
least three but not more than four months not to extend beyond the
caretaker parent's eligibility period.

(c)
If a child turns thirteen, or if a child receiving special needs
child care turns eighteen, during the eligibility period, the
caretaker parent may continue to receive publicly funded child care
until the end of that eligibility period.

Subject
to available funds, the department of children and youth shall allow
a family to receive publicly funded child care unless the family's
income exceeds the maximum income eligibility limit. Initial and
continued eligibility for publicly funded child care is subject to
available funds unless the family is receiving child care pursuant to
division (A)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of section 5104.30 of the Revised
Code. If the department must limit eligibility due to lack of
available funds, it shall give first priority for publicly funded
child care to an assistance group whose income is not more than the
maximum income eligibility limit that received transitional child
care in the previous month but is no longer eligible because the
eligibility period has expired. Such an assistance group shall
continue to receive priority for publicly funded child care until its
income exceeds the maximum income eligibility limit.

(3)
An assistance group that ceases to participate in the Ohio works
first program established under Chapter 5107. of the Revised Code is
eligible for transitional child care at any time during the
immediately following twelve-month period that both of the following
apply:

(a)
The assistance group requires child care due to employment;

(b)
The assistance group's income is not more than
one

two

hundred

fifty

five

per
cent of the federal poverty line.

An
assistance group ineligible to participate in the Ohio works first
program pursuant to section 5101.83 or section 5107.16 of the Revised
Code is not eligible for transitional child care.

(B)
To the extent permitted by federal law, the department of children
and youth may require a caretaker parent determined to be eligible
for publicly funded child care to pay a fee according to the schedule
of fees established in rules adopted under section 5104.38 of the
Revised Code. The department shall make protective child care
services and homeless child care services available to children
without regard to the income or assets of the caretaker parent of the
child.

(C)
A caretaker parent receiving publicly funded child care shall report
to the entity that determined eligibility any changes in status with
respect to employment or participation in a program of education or
training not later than ten calendar days after the change occurs.

(D)
If the department of children and youth determines that available
resources are not sufficient to provide publicly funded child care to
all eligible families who request it, the department may establish a
waiting list. The department may establish separate waiting lists
within the waiting list based on income.

(E)
A caretaker parent shall not receive publicly funded child care from
more than one child care provider per child during a week, unless a
county department grants the family an exemption for one of the
following reasons:

(1)
The child needs additional care during non-traditional hours;

(2)
The child needs to change providers in the middle of the week and the
hours of care provided by the providers do not overlap;

(3)
The child's provider is closed on scheduled school days off or on
calamity days.

(F)
As used in this section, "maximum income eligibility limit"
means the amount of income specified in rules adopted under division
(A) of section 5104.38 of the Revised Code.

Sec.
5104.38.
In
addition to any other rules adopted under this chapter, the director
of children and youth shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter
119. of the Revised Code governing financial and administrative
requirements for publicly funded child care and establishing all of
the following:

(A)
Procedures and criteria to be used in making determinations of
eligibility for publicly funded child care that give priority to
children of families with lower incomes and procedures and criteria
for eligibility for publicly funded protective child care or homeless
child care. The rules shall specify the maximum amount of income a
family may have for initial and continued eligibility.
The

Beginning
July 1, 2027, the
maximum
amount shall not exceed
three

the
following:

(1)
For initial eligibility, two hundred per cent of the federal poverty
line;

(2)
For initial eligibility for special needs child care, two hundred
five per cent of the federal poverty line;

(3)
For continued eligibility, three
hundred

fifty-five

per
cent of the federal poverty line.
The

The

rules
may specify exceptions to the eligibility requirements in the case of
a family that previously received publicly funded child care and is
seeking to have the child care reinstated after the family's
eligibility was terminated.

(B)
A schedule of fees requiring all eligible caretaker parents to pay a
fee for publicly funded child care according to income and family
size, which shall be uniform for all types of publicly funded child
care, except as authorized by rule, and, to the extent permitted by
federal law, shall permit the use of state and federal funds to pay
the customary deposits and other advance payments that a provider
charges all children who receive child care from that provider.

(C)
A formula for determining the amount of state and federal funds
appropriated for publicly funded child care that may be allocated to
a county department to use for administrative purposes;

(D)
Procedures to be followed by the department and county departments in
recruiting individuals and groups to become providers of child care;

(E)
Procedures to be followed in establishing state or local programs
designed to assist individuals who are eligible for publicly funded
child care in identifying the resources available to them and to
refer the individuals to appropriate sources to obtain child care;

(F)
Procedures to deal with fraud and abuse committed by either
recipients or providers of publicly funded child care;

(G)
Procedures for establishing a child care grant or loan program in
accordance with the child care block grant act;

(H)
Standards and procedures for applicants to apply for grants and
loans, and for the department to make grants and loans;

(I)
A definition of "person who stands in loco parentis" for
the purposes of division (OO)(3) of section 5104.01 of the Revised
Code;

(J)
Procedures for a county department of job and family services to
follow in making eligibility determinations and redeterminations for
publicly funded child care available through telephone, computer, and
other means at locations other than the county department;

(K)
If the director establishes a different payment rate under division
(E)(3)(d) of section 5104.30 of the Revised Code, standards and
procedures for determining the amount of the higher payment that is
to be issued to a child care provider based on the special needs of
the child being served;

(L)
To the extent permitted by federal law, procedures for enrolling and
paying for up to thirty days of child care for a child whose
caretaker parent is seeking employment, taking part in employment
orientation activities, or taking part in activities in anticipation
of enrolling in or attending an education or training program or
activity, if the employment or the education or training program or
activity is expected to begin within the thirty-day period;

(M)
Any other rules necessary to carry out sections 5104.30 to 5104.43 of
the Revised Code.

Section
2.
That
existing sections 5104.34 and 5104.38 of the Revised Code are hereby
repealed.