| Summary |
The bill creates 3 new programs to be implemented and
administered by the division of housing in the department of local affairs
(division). The division is required to adopt policies, procedures, and
guidelines for each program on or before November 1, 2024. Each
program will be available for 4 years. For each program, collaboration
between the division and the department of early childhood is required for
the policies the division develops and adopts to implement the programs.
Additionally, the division is required to submit an annual report regarding
the programs to specified legislative committees and to the department of
early childhood.
The child care facility development toolkit and technical assistance
program is created to provide technical assistance from consultants and
related professionals to enable interested child care providers, developers,
employers, and local governments to understand the technical aspects of
planning, developing, building, and co-locating child care facilities. The
division must prioritize applications for projects that will meet a
demonstrable need for child care in the areas of greatest need across the
state and that satisfy one or more purposes of the program. The division
is required to annually publish a report regarding the assistance provided
under this program and the uses of such assistance by program recipients.
The child care facility development planning grant program is
created to incentivize and support local governments in identifying and
making regulatory updates or improvements to community planning,
development, building, zoning, and other regulatory processes to support
the development of child care facilities. The division must develop a
menu of recommended policy or regulatory tools, and eligible recipients
for the grant must intend to implement one or more of such tools off the
menu or identify other local policies or programs to implement to
streamline the eligible recipient's regulatory environment for the
development of child care facilities. The division must publish a report
that contains information regarding the amount of grants distributed and
a description of recipients' use of the grants.
The child care facility development capital grant program is
created to provide eligible entities, which are local governments or
public-private partnerships, with money to construct, remodel, renovate,
or retrofit a child care facility to meet a demonstrated need for child care
in a local government's community. The state housing board within the
division will be utilized by the division to review and make
recommendations on grant applications. Grant recipients are required to
provide a financial match. The financial match for center-based facilities
is 50% and the financial match for home-based facilities is 25%. More
weight is given to applications that represent geographic diversity, will
serve a high percentage of families below the area's median income,
commit to providing a well-compensated staff, co-locate with or
repurpose facilities with other uses, plan to serve children in regions with
low child care capacity, or plan to serve infants and toddlers. The division
must publish a report that contains information regarding the amount of
grants distributed and a description of recipients' use of the grants.
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