Questions and answers on NM’s child care expansion

Q : How does the child care assistance program work?

A: New Mexico’s child care assistance program fully or partially pays for the cost of child care at licensed centers and homes by reimbursing providers.

Participating families typically have to pay a co-payment based on their income, while the state covers the rest of the cost, though such co-pays have largely been waived by the state through June 2022.

That means that only those making more than 200% of the federal poverty level — or $53,000 per year for a family of four — will have to pay a share of the cost in the coming year.

Previously, co-payment levels ranged from $10 per month for a family of four that makes $9,000 annually to $324 for a family of four that makes $48,000 yearly.

The intent of the program is to make child care more accessible for working families; as Early Childhood Education and Care Secretary Elizabeth Groginsky said, a New Mexico family with two children can currently expect to pay $2,000 or more monthly for child care costs.

“The reality is the cost of child care is out of reach for many families,” she said during a recent legislative committee hearing.

The full co-payment schedule is posted online at: https://www.nmececd.org/ child-care-assistance/.

Who is eligible to participate?

The program helps families who are working, attending school or training, or looking for work. (For details, see below.)

The income ceiling for those eligible will increase dramatically beginning Aug. 1 — from the current 200% of the federal poverty level to 350% of the federal poverty level.

That puts the eligibility limit at $92,750 yearly for a family of four. And families that originally qualify, but then see a modest increase in income, won’t lose access to the assistance as long as their income remains below 400% of the poverty level.

Meanwhile, newly eligible New Mexicans will have a co-payment that will be capped at 300% of the federal poverty level.

For example, a family of four making slightly less than $80,000 per year will see a maximum co-pay of $904 per month for the first child.

The newly eligible population will officially be called the “priority four plus”category under an emergency rule proposed by the Early Childhood Education and Care Department.

It will be restricted to essential workers, though that definition applies to virtually all types of jobs.

That’s because the department adopted a separate rule that took effect in July that, in part, says: “The presumption is that all workers are essential to the well-being of the state’s economy” during the state’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, subject to budgetary considerations.

How is the state paying for the eligibility expansion?

The child care expansion, and the change in subsidy rates paid to providers, will be paid for over the next two years with roughly $320 million in federal stimulus dollars.

That figure includes about $130 million in discretionary funds to pay for the eligibility expansion, state officials have said.

It’s unclear how the state might pay for the program once the federal stimulus funds run out, an issue seized on by several Republican legislators.

However, Groginsky has pointed out that state voters will decide in November 2022 whether to earmark more money from New Mexico’s largest permanent fund for early childhood programs.

If that proposed constitutional amendment is approved, some of that money could theoretically be used to pay to continue the expanded child care assistance program.

There’s also a new early childhood endowment fund that lawmakers created in 2020 by setting aside about $300 million from an oil-fueled budget surplus.

And it’s possible Congress could earmark more money for early childhood programs nationwide under the proposed American Family Plan.

How do I qualify?

Families seeking to participate in the program must complete an application form and then verify eligibility by showing birth certificates, pay stubs, photo identification or other types of documents.

Any child between the ages of 6 weeks and 13 years is eligible to be enrolled in the program. You can find the application at: https://www.nmececd.org/child-care-assistance/.

Families with multiple young children face reduced costs for additional kids to participate in the child care assistance program, as the co-payment for each additional child is set at half the co-payment for the previous child.

In other words, if the first enrolled child’s monthly co-payment is $100, the pay level for the second child would be $50. And the co-payment for a third child would be $25.

How long does the child care assistance program last?

Child care benefits are paid for 12 months to families who are working, attending school or participating in a job training or educational program, and who demonstrate a need for care.

Families can reapply for an additional 12 months once their eligibility period ends.

Parents or guardians who are looking for a job may qualify for child care assistance for up to three months.

Will there be enough child care facilities to handle the expansion?

This could be an issue to watch as there are currently fewer licensed child care centers than before the pandemic — 626 compared to 753 before March 2020 — though the number has been increasing in recent months as some shuttered centers reopen.

But the maximum capacity for those child care centers has dropped by 6,220 children — from 58,865 to 52,645 — from pre-pandemic levels.

The access issue is especially problematic in some rural New Mexico counties as 14 of the state’s 33 counties can be classified as “child care deserts,” or locations that lack ready access to child care.

Groginsky said in an interview that she’s hopeful the eligibility expansion and a change in the state’s subsidy rate to providers will lead to additional child care centers being opened and existing centers expanding.

The agency is also planning to use federal dollars to give one-time $1,500 bonus payments for all child care workers this fall, she said.

However, there is currently enough licensed child care for only 86% of New Mexico children under age 6 in families with two working parents, according to ECECD data.