FILED ON: 3/18/2024

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2707

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

_______________

In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)

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An Act ensuring affordability, readiness and learning for our youth and driving economic development.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Chapter 15A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 19E the following 2 sections:-

Section 19F. (a) Subject to appropriation, the board shall, in coordination with the board of early education and care, establish an early education and care educator scholarship program for early education and care sector educators pursuant to clause (10) of section 5 of chapter 15D including, but not limited to, standards for the administration of the program and application criteria to ensure that the program provides meaningful improvements in the delivery of high-quality early education and care.

(b) A scholarship granted under the program may be used to cover the cost of tuition, fees or course-related expenses including, but not limited to, personal child care expenses in order to attend classes and class meetings, and other supports deemed appropriate by the board, in consultation with the board of early education and care, for early education and care educators who are pursuing early education credentials, associate-level degrees or bachelor-level degrees to meet the teacher and program quality standards of the department of early education and care.

(c) Eligible recipients shall be current or prospective early education and care educators employed or seeking employment in early education and care programs in the commonwealth who commit to providing early education and care for a term of service to be determined by the boards.

(d) Preference for scholarships shall be given to applicants identified as educators who have displayed a proven commitment to early childhood education or are members of a socially or economically disadvantaged community.             

(e) The program shall be administered by the department, in collaboration with the department of early education and care, to ensure that recipients receive adequate support in selecting programs and courses that lead to the attainment of early education credentials and further their career in early education and care.

Section 19G. Subject to appropriation, the board shall, in coordination with the board of early education and care, establish an early education and care educator loan forgiveness program for early education and care educators pursuant to clause (10) of the second paragraph of section 5 of chapter 15D. Preference for loans shall be given to applicants identified as educators who have displayed a proven commitment to early childhood education and either: (i) who work in communities predominantly serving children and families with high needs as defined in section 1A of said chapter 15D (ii) or work in regions with a shortage of early education and care slots.

SECTION 2. Section 1A of chapter 15D of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of “Group care facility” the following definition:-

“High needs”, a designation for those individuals or families whose income is not more than 85 per cent of the state median income and individuals with needs that may result in the individual or family requiring more services including, but not limited to, individuals or families: (i) experiencing a physical, mental, emotional, intellectual, cognitive, behavioral or health-related disability or condition or exposure to domestic violence; (ii) with a history of trauma; (iii) with limited English proficiency or limited literacy; (iv) experiencing homelessness or housing instability; or (v) with other high needs as determined by the department.

SECTION 3. Said section 1A of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in lines 98 to 100, inclusive, the words “, but the number of children under the age of 16 in a large family child care home shall not exceed 10, including participating children living in the residence”.

SECTION 4. The second paragraph of section 2 of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out clause (e) and inserting in place thereof the following clause:-

(e) establish and develop a schedule for revising: (1) a rate structure for voucher and contracted payments to early education and care providers that enroll children receiving child care financial assistance, which shall be informed by the cost of providing high-quality early education and care to such children in conformity with federal and state laws, regulations and quality and safety standards; and (2) a sliding fee scale for families receiving child care financial assistance, which shall be updated within 1 year of the department expanding income eligibility for the child care financial assistance program under subsection (e) of section 13A, or not less than every 5 years, whichever occurs first, to reflect affordability standards for participating families; provided, however, that recipients of child care financial assistance whose income is not more than 100 per cent of the federal poverty level shall not be charged fees for care; provided further, that the sliding fee scale shall be implemented by applying said scale to the amount that a family’s income exceeds 100 per cent of the federal poverty level; provided further, that recipients of child care financial assistance shall not be charged fees for care that exceed 7 per cent of the family’s total income. Prior to the establishment or revision of the rate structure or sliding fee scale, the department shall hold a public hearing under chapter 30A on such establishment or revisions and the board shall approve such establishment or revision; provided, however, that the department shall submit any proposed rate structure or sliding scale fee with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives not less than 60 days prior to implementation.

SECTION 5. Said section 2 of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 108, the word “training.” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- training;

(v) in consultation with the data advisory commission established in section 12B, annually collect data on: (1) the number of early education and care providers; (2) the number of employees at early education and care providers, delineated by job position and full-time or part-time designation; (3) the pay rates and employer-paid benefits for employees at early education and care providers, delineated by job position and full-time or part-time designation; (4) the tuition charged by early education and care providers for full and part-time early education and care, delineated by age group; (5) the number of children enrolled by early education and care providers, delineated by region, age, type of care, family income range, race, ethnicity, country of origin, disability status, receipt of early intervention services, primary language of the household and the number of adults in the household; (6) the number of children receiving child care financial assistance, delineated by region, age, type of care, family income range, race, ethnicity, country of origin, disability status, receipt of early intervention services, primary language of the household and number of adults in the household; (7) the total cost of child care financial assistance provided by the department or its agents; (8) the average monthly number of utilized and unutilized contracted slots and vouchers, delineated by region and type of care; and (9) the average monthly number of children on the department’s waitlist for child care financial assistance, delineated by region, age, type of care, family income range, race, ethnicity, country of origin, disability status, receipt of early intervention services, primary language of the household and number of adults in the household; provided, however, that the department shall include a summary of the data collected in the department’s annual report required by subsection (g) of section 3; and

(w) develop, maintain and disseminate a written early education and care informational pamphlet accessible through the department’s website, containing resources for parents of newborns including, but not limited to: (1) information on the short and long-term developmental benefits of a quality early education and care curriculum; (2) the department’s role in licensing providers, conducting background record checks and the differences between licensed and unlicensed providers; (3) child care financial assistance eligibility requirements; and (4) the website for families to access an online directory, searchable by geographic location, of licensed child care programs across the commonwealth; provided, however, that the department shall disseminate the pamphlet to accessible locations including, but not limited to: (i) public libraries; (ii) family resource centers; (iii) hospitals with maternity services; and (iv) birthing centers.

SECTION 6. Section 3A of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 23, the words “Parents Alliance for Catholic Education” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- Massachusetts Council for American Private Education.

SECTION 7. Section 3A of said chapter 15D, as appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in line 26, the words “the Bureau of Jewish Education” and inserting in place thereof the following words:- Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston, Inc.

SECTION 8. Section 5 of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “knowledge”, in line 27, the following words:- , including cultural competency and awareness of implicit bias.

SECTION 9. Said chapter 15D is hereby further amended by inserting after section 12A the following section:-

Section 12B. (a) There shall be a data advisory commission to promote the improved use of state, provider and program-level data related to the cost, quality and utilization of early education and care services.

The data advisory commission shall assist the department in identifying, analyzing and making recommendations on high-impact, cost-effective data strategies for assessing the needs of families and children including, but not limited to: (i) establishing a data collection and reporting system to track the data that the department is required to collect under clause (v) of the second paragraph of section 2; (ii) strengthening the department’s capacity to analyze and report on staffing, scheduling and financial data in ways that support strategic resource allocation decisions, including a review of national best practice models that ensure greater financial transparency; (iii) strengthening the department’s capacity to use data to inform strategic resource allocation and implementation decisions; and (iv) streamlining data reporting including, but not limited to, eliminating duplicative reporting requirements. In making its recommendations, the commission shall consider the needs and capabilities of early education and care providers located in rural areas.

(b) The data advisory commission shall consist of: the commissioner of early education and care or a designee, who shall serve as chair; the secretary of education or a designee; 17members who shall have demonstrated knowledge and experience in data collection and analysis for the purpose of improving access to high-quality and affordable early education and care services, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Association for Early Education & Care, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by Neighborhood Villages Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Alliance of Massachusetts YMCAs, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Head Start Association, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Afterschool Partnership, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Common Start Coalition, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Early Childhood Funder Collaborative, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Business Roundtable, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Business Coalition for Early Childhood Education, 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Boston Foundation, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by Jumpstart for Young Children, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by Strategies for Children, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, Inc., 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, Inc. and 1 of whom shall be appointed by Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, Inc.; and 5 members who shall be appointed by the commissioner, 1 of whom shall be a family-based early education and care provider, 1 of whom shall be a center-based early education and care provider, 1 of whom shall be a parent of a child currently enrolled in an early education and care program and 2 of whom shall have professional experience and knowledge in the area of data collection, quality and usage in establishing education policy and improving child and family outcomes. Appointees on the advisory commission shall reflect geographically diverse regions of the commonwealth to ensure regional equity within the commission.

(c) Annually, not later than December 1, the data advisory commission shall submit a report on recommendations and findings to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education. The report shall be made publicly available on the department’s website.

SECTION 10. Said chapter 15D is hereby further amended by inserting after section 13 the following section:-

Section 13A. (a) The department shall maintain, subject to appropriation, a child care financial assistance program that shall provide sufficient financial assistance to enable eligible families to afford and access high-quality early education and care for infants, toddlers, preschool-age children and school-age children.

(b) The department shall provide child care financial assistance to support early education and care through means which shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) providing vouchers for payments to early education and care providers of a family’s choosing; and (ii) offering families the option of an open slot with an early education and care provider that is contracted with the department; provided, however, that an eligible family shall receive only 1 type of support for each eligible child. Reimbursement for vouchers and contracted payments to early education and care providers that enroll children receiving child care financial assistance shall be based on enrollment; provided, however, that enrollment shall be measured by the department using quarterly enrollment averages or if deemed appropriate by the department, enrollment averages less frequent than quarterly.

(c) Child care financial assistance may be used for early education and care provided by public, private, nonprofit and for-profit entities licensed or approved by the department including, but not limited to, preschools, child care centers, nursery schools, before-school programs, after-school programs, out-of-school time programs, Head Start programs, Early Head Start programs, informal child care providers and independent and system-affiliated family child care homes. As a condition for receiving child care financial assistance from the department under this section, an early education and care provider shall enter into and comply with a contract with the department or its agents. The department shall develop the contract which shall include a requirement that the early education and care provider comply with all applicable requirements of this chapter and any other federal or state requirements necessary to receive funding for child care financial assistance provided to families under this section.

(d) The department shall provide child care financial assistance to: (i) families with a child who has an open case at the department of children and families or families with a child who is otherwise referred by the department of children and families; (ii) families currently involved with, or transitioning from, transitional aid to families with dependent children, including: (A) recipients of transitional aid to families with dependent children benefits; (B) former recipients of transitional aid to families with dependent children benefits who are working or are engaged in an approved service need activity for up to 1 year after termination of their benefits; (C) participants who are working or are engaged in an approved service need activity for up to 1 year after the transitional period; (D) parents who are under 18 years of age who are currently enrolled in a job training program and who would qualify for benefits under chapter 118 if not for the consideration of the income of the minor parents’ legal guardians or parents; and (E) recipients of the supplemental nutrition assistance program who are participating in education and training services approved by the department of transitional assistance; and (iii) families in need of early education and care services whose family income is not more than 85 per cent of the state median income; provided, however, that the department shall promulgate regulations to ensure that priority shall be given to families: (A) whose family income is not more than 50 per cent of the state median income; (B) in which a parent or caregiver is working in the field of early education and care subject to rules or regulations set by the department; (C) with children who have a documented disability and whose family income is not more than 85 per cent of the state median income; (D) who are experiencing homelessness; (E) who are headed by a young parent as determined by the department; and (F) experiencing domestic violence.

(e) If additional funds are available or the federal government obligates itself to release additional funding to expand access to child care services beyond those reasonably sufficient to fund subsection (d), the department shall, in a manner consistent with any requirements placed on the receipt or expenditure of the relevant federal funds, allocate funding to increase the number of families receiving child care financial assistance based on income eligibility in the following order of priority to provide child care financial assistance to: (i) families eligible under said clause (iii) of said subsection (d); (ii) families in need of child care services whose family income is above 85 per cent, but not more than 100 per cent, of the state median income; (iii) families in need of child care services whose family income is above 100 per cent, but not more than 110 per cent, of the state median income; and (iv) families in need of child care services whose family income is not more than 125 per cent of the state median income.

(f) If a school-age child is receiving child care financial assistance, the assistance shall continue until the end of the school year even if the child reaches the maximum age prior to the last day of the school year.

(g) For the purposes of child care financial assistance eligibility, “family income” shall include the income of parents living with the child receiving child care financial assistance but shall not include: (i) any form of income of foster parents, caregivers or other adult family members; (ii) income of siblings who are not receiving child care financial assistance; or (iii) earned income of any minor child.

To the extent allowable under federal law and regulation, no child care financial assistance provided under this section shall be counted as income or assets for the purpose of disqualifying any person from eligibility for any other government benefit for which the person is otherwise eligible including, but not limited to, transitional aid to families with dependent children benefits.

(h) The department or its agents shall not reduce, terminate or deny continued child care financial assistance to a family based solely on family income unless the income exceeds 85 per cent of the state median income or the income threshold for currently eligible families as prioritized in subsection (e), whichever is higher. If a family is determined to be ineligible for financial assistance, the family shall be given an opportunity for an administrative review. If the department or its agents, after such administrative review, reduce, terminate or deny a family’s child care financial assistance, the department shall provide the family with an opportunity for an administrative appeal hearing and shall process the appeal within 60 days from the date the request is made. Subject to department rules and regulations, while an administrative review or, if applicable, an administrative appeal hearing is pending and until a final determination is made, services supported by child care financial assistance shall continue after receipt of a notice of reduction, termination or denial of continued child care financial assistance.

(i) The department shall review the child care financial assistance program not less than annually to identify access barriers to families and opportunities to improve families’ experiences with the child care financial assistance process, including, but not limited to, department paperwork and verification requirements. The department shall take action to remove any access barriers, including, but not limited to: (i) making technological improvements; (ii) streamlining the application and renewal processes; (iii) improving outreach to potentially eligible families regarding the availability of child care financial assistance and the application process; and (iv) improving access for families with limited English proficiency.

(j) Annually, not later than February 15, the department shall file a report to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education on the child care financial assistance program including, but not limited to: (i) the number of applications received; (ii) the numbers of applications denied, delineated by reason for denial; (iii) the number of administrative reviews requested, delineated by reasons for ineligibility as determined by the department; (iv) the number of administrative reviews performed, delineated by reversal, reduction, termination and denial of child care financial assistance and length of time in which a decision was made; and (v) the number of administrative appeal hearings, delineated by the administrative appeal hearing decisions and length of time in which a decision was made. The report shall be made publicly available on the department’s website.

(k) The department shall promulgate regulations necessary to implement this section.

SECTION 11. Subsection (a) of section 17 of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the definitions of “Family child care provider” and “Family child care services” and inserting in place thereof the following 2 definitions:-

“Family child care provider”, a person who provides family child care services on behalf of children receiving child care financial assistance and receives payment from the commonwealth for such services under a rate structure for voucher and contracted payments.

“Family child care services”, child care services provided for less than 24 hours per day in the residence of the provider on behalf of children receiving child care financial assistance for which payment from the commonwealth is made under a rate structure for voucher and contracted payments.

SECTION 12. Subsection (b) of said section 17 of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the fifth sentence  the following sentence:- Deductions may further be made under said sections 17A, 17G and 17J of said chapter 180 from payments received by family child care providers through grants received under section 19; provided, however, that notwithstanding subsection (g), with the exception of dispute resolution procedures regarding grant payment errors, the distribution, disbursement or allocation amounts or formulas of said grants shall not be the subject of negotiation or collective bargaining.

SECTION 13. Ssaid ection 17 of said chapter 15D, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by striking out, in line 76, the words “low-income and other at-risk children” and inserting in place thereof the following:- children receiving financial assistance.             

SECTION 14. Said chapter 15D is hereby further amended by adding the following 2 sections:-

Section 19. (a) The department shall, subject to appropriation, establish, distribute and maintain an operational grant program for early education and care providers to provide high-quality and sustainable education and care.

(b) Eligible uses for operational grants shall include, but not be limited to: (i) compensating early education and care provider staff through increased salaries, benefits, bonuses, professional development or access to continuing education opportunities; (ii) increasing the affordability of early education and care to families, including by reducing the tuition and fees paid by families or offering scholarships to families; (iii) enabling early education and care providers to provide high-quality early education and care and to comply with applicable health, safety, educational and quality-assurance requirements, any other requirements of this chapter, and requirements imposed by the department consistent with this chapter; (iv) improving facilities and physical spaces used by the providers; (v) enabling early education and care providers to purchase high-quality, evidence-based early literacy materials; (vi) enabling providers to address emergency situations during which the cost of care significantly increases due to additional federal, state or department requirements or the loss of fees due to absence or unenrollment that jeopardizes early education and care providers’ ability to retain their facilities and staff; and (vii) enabling early education and care providers to maintain or increase capacity to provide voluntary supplemental services to enrolled children and their families including, but not limited to, social work services, health and disability-related services and support services to parents and caregivers.

(c) The department shall maintain a formula for distributing operational grants to early education and care providers, which shall give preference to providers that serve: (i) high numbers of children receiving child care financial assistance; (ii) high numbers of high needs children; and (iii) unique populations or that otherwise advance the interest of the program as determined by the department. The formula shall consider: (i) licensed capacity and enrollment including the ages of the children enrolled and the ages of the children for whom the provider has capacity; provided, however, that enrollment shall be measured by the department using quarterly enrollment averages or if deemed appropriate by the department, enrollment averages less frequent than quarterly (ii) costs associated with employee compensation, including salaries and benefits; (iii) the number of enrolled children receiving child care financial assistance or scholarship assistance from an early education and care provider; (iv) the demographics and income of families served, including the number of children enrolled and identified as high needs; (v) the cost of goods and services necessary for provider operations, including rent, utilities, maintenance and facility improvements; (vi) the cost of quality care methodology developed by the department and, until such time as the methodology is established, any available information regarding the cost of quality early education and care, including available credentialing frameworks and applicable salary guidelines; (vii) increasing the financial stability of providers in need; (viii) and business structure of providers; and (ix) any other factors impacting the cost of providing quality early education and care including, but not limited to, serving infants and toddlers, providing nonstandard hours of care and providing care in socially and economically disadvantaged and historically underrepresented communities with shortages of early education and care slots. A provider that is not an “eligible organization” as defined in section 18 of chapter 15D and that, directly or through an affiliate, operates more than 10 center-based programs in the commonwealth shall not receive more than 1 per cent of annual program funds unless the provider is granted a waiver by the commissioner deeming such allocation of more than 1 per cent to be in the best interest of the commonwealth. The department shall incorporate geographic equity into the development of the distribution formula.

Annually, the department shall review and update the operational grant formula to ensure equity and effectiveness in the financial sustainability of early education and care providers. Prior to the establishment or a revision of the operation grant formula, the department shall conduct a public hearing under chapter 30A and submit the proposed updates to the board for its approval.

(d) As a condition for receiving operational grants under this section, the department shall require early education and care providers to: (i) enter into and comply with contractual agreements with the department or its agents, which shall be developed by the department; (ii) continue to, or demonstrate a willingness to, enroll children receiving child care financial assistance, if a family receiving child care financial assistance chooses the provider and the provider has an available opening; (iii) comply with the career ladder established in section 20, and if not feasible, provide increased salaries, compensation and benefits to the extent possible; and (iv) provide the department with data that the department requires, as needed to carry out the department’s assessment and reporting requirements under this section. The department shall solicit public comments prior to establishing or revising criteria for eligible recipients of the operational grant program.

(e) Operational grants shall, subject to appropriation and the distribution formula developed under subsection (c), be renewed for each provider; provided, however, that renewal shall not be required if there is a change in circumstances for the provider making them ineligible, the provider is not in compliance with this section or if the department, in its discretion, determines that renewal would not be appropriate.

(f) The department shall establish enforceable compliance standards to ensure the integrity of the program. The standards shall ensure that open slots in early education and care providers that receive operational grants are accessible to children receiving child care financial assistance and that recipients are making meaningful progress towards complying with the career ladder standards established in section 20; provided however, that a provider that is not an “eligible organization” as defined in section 18 of chapter 15D and that, directly or through an affiliate, operates more than 10 center-based programs in the commonwealth and receives operational grants shall: (i) demonstrate a willingness to accept more children receiving child care financial assistance at each program location operated by the provider or an affiliate of the provider in proportion to the provider’s size, as determined by the department; (ii) dedicate a certain percentage of the provider’s operational grant funds, as determined by the department, to increasing compensation for their early education educators in alignment with the department's career ladder; and (iii) annually provide the department with an audited financial statement detailing how the provider’s operational grant funds are spent. Prior to establishing or revising standards, the department shall solicit public input.

(g) The department shall include information on the status of the operational grant program in the department’s annual report required by subsection (g) of section 3. This information shall include, but not be limited to: (i) a description of the distribution formula; (ii) an analysis of the incorporation of equity into the distribution formula; (iii) an analysis of the demographic data of the families served by recipients of operational grants; (iv) an analysis of how recipients are using operational grants; (v) an analysis of the impact of the operational grant program on supporting provider sustainability, increasing the availability of early education and care slots, supporting the early education and care workforce, assisting providers with complying with the career ladder established under section 20 and improving access to, and the affordability of, high-quality early education and care; (vi) an analysis of the impact that the termination of the operational grant program would have on the commonwealth; (vii) if applicable, recommendations on how the program could be modified to most effectively direct grant funding to providers serving families with the greatest needs; and (viii) if applicable, recommendations on how to amend the distribution formula to maximize the goals of educational equity, school readiness and optimal results for families with the greatest needs. The department shall publicly post on its website the amount of operational grants awarded, delineated by the name of each recipient and by the municipality in which the recipient is located.

Section 20. (a) The department shall maintain an early education and care career ladder as considered under clause (11) of the second paragraph of section 5.

(b) The career ladder shall include, but not be limited to: (i) minimum recommended salaries and compensation for each level of the career ladder that are commensurate with the salaries of public school teachers with equivalent education, credentials and training required for a position; (ii) minimum recommended benefits for early education and care provider staff including, but not limited to, health insurance, retirement benefits, paid vacation and other leave time; and (iii) recommendations for linking professional development and educational credentials to increased compensation and leadership opportunities in early education and care. Prior to establishing or revising the career ladder, the department shall solicit public input.

(c) The department shall review the career ladder’s compensation structure and benefits guidelines annually and update them, as needed, based on increased cost of living or any other factors deemed relevant by the department to determine appropriate compensation for the field.

SECTION 15. Section 3 of chapter 40A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the fifth paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-

Family child care home and large family child care home as defined in section 1A of chapter 15D shall be an allowable use and no city or town shall prohibit or regulate such use in its zoning ordinances or by-laws.

SECTION 16. Not later than October 31, 2024, the department of early education and care shall submit a report to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education on a proposed methodology to calculate and assess the cost of providing high-quality early education and care. The methodology shall take into consideration the full cost of service delivery, including, but not limited to, costs that vary based on: (i) geographic region; (ii) early education and care provider type and size; (iii) the age ranges of children served; (iv) group size and ratios; (v) the demographics of the populations served by early education and care providers; and (vi) costs of additional services to children and families with high needs, as defined in section 1A of chapter 15D of the General Laws, including staff and staff training necessary to accommodate children with disabilities or other high needs, interpreter services, mental health supports for children and staff and staff time required to provide comprehensive family engagement and services to ensure effective early education and promote multigenerational success.

In developing the methodology, the department shall consider the factors that affect the cost of service delivery including, but not limited to: (i) administration; (ii) staff pay and benefits; (iii) professional development and instructional coaching; (iv) operations and maintenance including, but not limited to, rent, equipment, technology, furniture and utility costs; (v) educational supplies and curricula; (vi) food services; and (vii) transportation services.

The department shall include in its report: (i) recommendations to annually assess and update the methodology to ensure continued alignment with the cost of providing high-quality early education and care and compliance with federal regulations; and (ii) recommendations regarding the use of the methodology to inform the development of child care financial assistance reimbursement rates under clause (e) of the second paragraph of section 2 of said chapter 15D and the distribution formula for the operational grant program established in section 19 of said chapter 15D.

SECTION 17.  Not later than January 1, 2025, the department of early education and care shall submit a report to the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education on family, friend and neighbor care, which shall include, but not be limited to: (i) feasibility of implementing and overseeing a family, friend and neighbor care network; (ii) department structures necessary to evaluate and support a family, friend and neighbor care network; (iii) sustainability of said network; and (iv) any legislative changes necessary to carry out the recommendations. Prior to reporting its findings, the department shall consult with Community Labor United Inc.’s Care That Works pilot program, New England United for Justice, Inc., Service Employees International Union Local 509 and the Massachusetts Child Care Resource and Referral Network, Inc.

SECTION 18. Subject to appropriation, the department of early education and care, in consultation with the executive office of economic development, shall establish a competitive matching grant pilot program to increase access to high quality and affordable early education and care by incentivizing employer investments. The pilot program shall be open to a Massachusetts employer, a group of Massachusetts employers or an early education and care provider partnering with a Massachusetts employer or group of Massachusetts employers. The pilot program shall fund investments in infrastructure, startup, employment or other related costs to establish new early education and care slots or increase the number of children that can be served by at least 1 early education and care provider. As part of the application for the pilot program, an applicant shall: (i) commit to investing not less than 50 per cent of the expected pilot program cost on infrastructure, startup, employment or other costs related to creating new early education and care slots or increasing the number of children that can be served by at least 1 early education and care provider; (ii) certify that it will pay employees pursuant to salary and compensation guidelines established by the department; and (iii) ensure that early education and care providers funded through this program enroll or commit to enrolling children receiving child care financial assistance. The department shall seek to maximize equity when reviewing and selecting grant applicants, including prioritizing applications that: (i) support higher numbers of children from low-income families; (ii) present a plan for maintaining affordable tuition prices for families; (iii) are from applicants located in rural area or in areas with a shortage of early education and care slots; (iv) support historically underserved populations, infants, toddlers, families with nontraditional work hours and families with children with high needs as defined in section 1A of chapter 15D of the General Laws; and (v) promote equity in other ways as deemed appropriate by the department. An early education and care provider shall not be eligible to participate in the pilot program unless the provider is a non-profit organization, an organization in which a non-profit organization has a controlling financial or managerial interest or a family-based early education and care provider. The department may contract with quasi-public or non-profit organizations to administer the program, including, but not limited to, the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation established in chapter 40H of the General Laws. The department may promulgate regulations or guidelines to implement this section, including, but not limited to, additional eligibility requirements and compliance protocols. Nothing in this section shall require the department to select an application if the department deems the application is not in the best interest of the program. Not later than December 1, 2024, and biannually thereafter for the duration of the pilot program, the department of early education and care shall file a report on the pilot program with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education.

SECTION 19. The department of early education and care and the executive office of labor and workforce development, in consultation with the commonwealth corporation and the early education and care workforce council established in section 79 of chapter 154 of the acts of 2018, shall conduct a study and report on enhancing the early education and care workforce pipeline and developing strategies and prioritizing programming and funding opportunities to ensure that the early educator workforce meets the needs of the commonwealth. The report shall include, but not be limited to, recommendations on the following: (i) recruiting new early education and care providers; (ii) developing apprenticeship programs and non-traditional recruitment opportunities including, but not limited to, education and workforce corps in the area of early education and care, as part of a curriculum-based service-learning program; (iii) opportunities for collaboration between early education and care providers and vocational schools with curricula that include early education and care; (iv) retaining early educators; (v) incentivizing the development of family child care providers; and (vi) exploring the potential for the growth of family child care providers into center-based programs. The report shall take into consideration existing resources pursuant to clause (12) of the second paragraph of section 5 of chapter 15D of the General Laws and may make recommendations regarding additional resources which would be required to fully implement the report.

The report shall be filed with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means, the joint committee on education and the joint committee on labor and workforce development not later than June 30, 2025. The report shall be made publicly available on the websites of the department of early education and care and the executive office of labor and workforce development.

SECTION 20. (a) Not later than June 30, 2025, the executive office of labor and workforce development, in consultation with the department of early education and care and the executive office of economic development, shall file a report with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education to study and make recommendations on employer-supported early education and care benefits. The report shall include, but not be limited to: (i) identifying and promoting employer best practices; (ii) exploring employer incentives to support additional early education and care benefits for their employees; (iii) examining the availability of state partnerships with the business community to support employees who have young children; (iv) exploring ways to improve collaboration across secretariats of state agencies to engage with the business community; (v) considering incentives or requirements for employers of a certain size or specific subgroups of employers to provide employer-supported early education and care benefits to employees; and (vi) considering the feasibility of assessing all or certain employers in order to fund expanded access to high quality, affordable early education and care. Prior to making its recommendations, the executive office of labor and workforce development shall meet with regionally-diverse stakeholders.

SECTION 21. Not later than June 30, 2025, the department of early education and care shall file a report with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education that assesses the current supply of slots for, and the unmet needs of, families in need of early education and care services whose family income is not more than 125 per cent of the state median income, taking into account relevant differences among geographic locations including, but not limited to: (i) subsidized transportation of children to and from early education and care providers; (ii) early education and care services for time periods outside standard hours; (iii) substitute care for when a family’s regular early education and care provider is unavailable; and (iv) any other factors that prevent families from accessing child care financial assistance. The report shall also include an assessment of the cost of addressing these unmet needs.

SECTION 22. Not later than June 30, 2025, the department of early education and care shall file a report with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education detailing a plan to pilot, scale and regularly evaluate shared services and quality licensed hubs for early education and care programs, including family-based early education and care providers.

SECTION 23. Not later than March 31, 2025, the department of higher education, in consultation with the department of early education and care, shall file a report with the clerks of senate and the house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education, on the design and implementation of sections 19F and 19G of chapter 15A of the General Laws.

SECTION 24. Not later than October 31, 2024, the department of early education and care shall file a report on the operational grant program established under section 19 of chapter 15D of the General Laws with the clerks of senate and the house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education. The report shall include the department’s proposed: (i) distribution formula for the operational grant program; (ii) eligibility criteria for the operational grant program; (iii) allowable uses of operational grants; and (iv) enforceable compliance standards for ensuring that program openings in early education and care providers receiving operational grants are accessible to children receiving child care financial assistance.

SECTION 25. The department of early education and care shall file a report: (i) detailing a plan to expand local partnerships, including strategies and resources necessary to address community-based program expansion plans currently in development under the Commonwealth Preschool Partnership Initiative grant; (ii) identifying means by which existing programming may be continued using existing resources available to child care providers in the mixed delivery system; (iii) identifying strategies for expanding the number of slots available in communities currently receiving Commonwealth preschool partnership initiative grants; and (iv) identifying best practices to expand local partnerships to more communities, including through mixed delivery programs administered by the local school system, municipal scholarship programs provided directly to families based on successful models already being implemented in certain municipalities and other approaches to expand access to public high-quality care. The report shall be filed with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education not later than December 31, 2025.

SECTION 26. Not later than December 31, 2025, the department of early education and care, in consultation with the Children’s Investment Fund and the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation, shall file a report with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means and the joint committee on education detailing proposed improvements to the Early Education and Out of School Time Capital fund. The report shall include, but not be limited to: (i) eligibility criteria; (ii) size of grants; (iii) ways to streamline the application process; (iv) any other parameters to increase the impact of the fund; and (v) any data available on unmet needs for early education and care facilities improvements.

SECTION 27. The department shall establish the first early education and care career ladder pursuant to section 20 of chapter 15D of the General Laws not later than October 31, 2024.

SECTION 28. Unless otherwise specified, the reports required to be issued pursuant to sections 16 to 26, inclusive, shall be made publicly available on the website of the department of early education and care.

SECTION 29. Sections 10 and 14 shall take effect on January 15, 2025.