Bill Text: NJ S1343 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits existing child care subsidy recipient from being treated as a new applicant for subsidy after moving to a new county of residence.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-02-11 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee [S1343 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-S1343-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator ANTHONY R. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits existing child care subsidy recipient from being treated as a new applicant for subsidy after moving to a new county of residence.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning child care subsidies, and amending P.L.1993, c.46.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 2 of P.L.1993, c.46 (C.30:5B-31) is amended to read as follows:
2. a. [The] In accordance with the provisions of subsection b. of this section, the Commissioner of Human Services is authorized to establish criteria for determining financial and programmatic eligibility for child care services subsidized through State and federal funding sources, including provisions for the submission of proof of income and resources, and such other documentation as may be necessary to establish programmatic eligibility.
b. If a person is deemed eligible for, and receives, a child care subsidy, pursuant to criteria established under subsection a. of this section, that person shall continue to receive the subsidy for which they were determined to be eligible, regardless of the person's place of residence, or change thereof, provided that the person satisfies the established criteria for continued program participation. A person who is receiving a child care subsidy, and who changes their place of residence from one county to another in the State, shall not be required to reapply for a subsidy as a new applicant, or to otherwise be subject to the eligibility requirements established for new applicants, and shall instead be treated as an existing subsidy recipient who is required only to satisfy the criteria established for continued program participation.
c. The commissioner is authorized to establish resource limits and a sliding fee scale applicable to participants based on income guidelines for all families eligible for subsidized child care services. In setting such fees, the commissioner shall give consideration to maximizing federal funding and to effectively utilizing all State and federal funding sources available for the purpose of subsidizing child care services in New Jersey.
[c.] d. The commissioner shall adopt such rules and regulations pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) as are necessary to carry out the purposes of [this act] P.L.1993, c.46 (C.30:5B-30 et seq.).
(cf: P.L.1993, c.46, s.2)
2. This act shall take
effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would prohibit the Department of Human Services from requiring a child care subsidy recipient to reapply for a subsidy, as a new applicant, following the recipient's change of residence from one county to another in the State.
Currently, the department uses two different income eligibility standards to determine, respectively, whether a first-time applicant can receive a child care subsidy, and whether an existing subsidy recipient can continue to receive such subsidy after the passage of time. Pursuant to these eligibility standards, a first time applicant for a child care subsidy must have an income that is equal to or less than 200% of the federal poverty level in order to qualify for a subsidy; however, after an eligible first time applicant begins to receive the subsidy, their income is allowed to grow, and they will remain eligible for continued program participation so long as their income does not rise above 250% of the federal poverty level.
The rules established by the department, however, effectively allow for the penalization of child care subsidy recipients who change their place of residence from one county to another in the State - a change that may be necessary to allow for their receipt of suitable affordable housing. In particular, whenever a subsidy recipient moves their place of residence from one county to another in the State, the department requires the subsidy recipient to reapply for a child care subsidy in the new county of residence, in accordance with the income eligibility requirements applicable to first-time applicants. In practice, this rule can result in the loss of child care subsidy benefits by parents who would otherwise have qualified for continued program participation, in their original county of residence, based on the higher income eligibility standard applicable to existing program participants.
This bill would eliminate this barrier to residential movement by specifying that a person's receipt of child care subsidies may not be based upon the person's place of residence, or any change thereof, and by further clarifying that a child care subsidy recipient, upon moving their place of residence, must remain subject only to the requirements applicable to existing program participants, and may not be required to reapply for a subsidy as a new applicant in the new county of residence, or otherwise be subject to the requirements for new applicants.
