88R24822 MM-D
 
  By: Johnson of Dallas, Button, Buckley, Rose, H.B. No. 3771
      Morrison, et al.
 
  Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3771:
 
  By:  Button C.S.H.B. No. 3771
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the creation of the employer child-care contribution
  partnership program administered by the Texas Workforce
  Commission; authorizing a civil penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by
  adding Chapter 319 to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 319.  EMPLOYER CHILD-CARE CONTRIBUTION PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM
         Sec. 319.001.  DEFINITION. In this chapter, "program" means
  the employer child-care contribution partnership program
  established under this chapter.
         Sec. 319.002.  ESTABLISHMENT. The commission shall
  establish and administer the employer child-care contribution
  partnership program to support families in this state in accessing
  high-quality child care by incentivizing eligible employers to
  contribute to eligible employee child-care costs and providing a
  state match for funds contributed by eligible employers.
         Sec. 319.003.  ADMINISTRATION. (a) The commission shall:
               (1)  adopt rules and establish procedures necessary to
  administer the program, including:
                     (A)  a standardized agreement for use by
  employers, employees, and child-care providers to apply for and
  enroll in the program;
                     (B)  eligibility and income verification
  procedures for employees;
                     (C)  eligibility criteria for child-care
  providers, including quality standards;
                     (D)  procedures for notifying each party to the
  agreement of:
                           (i)  the results of an eligibility
  determination; and
                           (ii)  the party's enrollment in the program
  as soon as practicable after receiving and processing the agreement
  and determining each party's eligibility;
                     (E)  procedures for determining the amount of the
  state match in accordance with Section 319.009(b) and notifying the
  employee and the child-care provider regarding the amount;
                     (F)  procedures for prioritizing and approving
  agreements, including maintaining a waitlist;
                     (G)  procedures for notifying the commission and
  the parties to the agreement regarding termination of the agreement
  by any party;
                     (H)  procedures for notifying the commission and
  the parties to the agreement regarding nonpayment by any party;
                     (I)  procedures for recouping state match money or
  a portion of state match money if there is an overpayment to a
  participating child-care provider;
                     (J)  criteria for disqualifying participants from
  the program;
                     (K)  procedures for hearing appeals from program
  participants; 
                     (L)  procedures for issuing and logging payments
  to a participating child-care provider; and
                     (M)  criteria and procedures for modifying or
  terminating an agreement, including:
                           (i)  if the relationship between the
  employee and employer is severed;
                           (ii)  if an employer fails to make a
  contribution in accordance with the terms of the agreement; and
                           (iii)  if a child-care provider ceases
  participation or otherwise becomes ineligible to participate in the
  program;
               (2)  ensure confidentiality protocols to safeguard the
  personal information of participating employers, employees, and
  child-care providers, including ensuring that an employee's
  personal information is not disclosed without the employee's
  written consent;
               (3)  maintain records regarding the balance of the
  program fund for each fiscal year and all payments made from the
  fund;
               (4)  develop informational material regarding the
  program's objectives, benefits, and eligibility requirements and
  distribute the material to employers, employees, and child-care
  providers; and
               (5)  maintain a waitlist if the money in the program
  fund is insufficient to approve all agreements received and provide
  a state match in accordance with Section 319.009(b).
         (b)  The commission may:
               (1)  delegate an administrative duty under the program
  to a division of the commission;
               (2)  coordinate and share information with other state
  agencies; and
               (3)  procure grants or contracts, in accordance with
  other law, with third parties to administer the program or parts of
  the program.
         (c)  The commission shall implement the program and issue a
  state match under Section 319.009(b) in a state fiscal year only if
  the legislature specifically appropriates money to the commission
  for that fiscal year for that purpose.  The commission may implement
  the program and issue a state match using other money available to
  the commission for that purpose.
         Sec. 319.004.  EMPLOYER DUTIES.  An employer who provides
  child-care assistance to an employee as a benefit of employment may
  participate in the program by entering into an agreement described
  by Section 319.007 with an eligible employee and child-care
  provider. The employer shall:
               (1)  provide at least 20 percent of the cost of the
  employee's child care as the employer contribution;
               (2)  enter into a standardized agreement under Section
  319.007 with an eligible employee and child-care provider;
               (3)  submit the agreement to the commission for
  verification of eligibility and approval;
               (4)  submit any additional information the commission
  considers necessary; and
               (5)  on verification and approval of the agreement by
  the commission, make contributions to the employee's eligible
  child-care costs in accordance with commission guidelines.
         Sec. 319.005.  EMPLOYEE DUTIES. (a) An employee shall
  complete an agreement described by Section 319.007 with the
  employee's employer and a child-care provider and provide any
  additional information the commission considers necessary.
         (b)  The employee shall pay the child-care provider the cost
  of child-care services not covered by the employer's contribution
  and the state match.
         (c)  If the amount of an employee's employer contribution and
  state match provided under the employee's agreement are
  insufficient to pay all of the employee's child-care costs, the
  employee may combine those amounts with the employer contribution
  and state match money provided under an agreement made under the
  program by a member of the employee's household or family to pay the
  total costs, provided that combining the amounts does not result in
  overpayment to the provider.
         Sec. 319.006.  PROVIDER ELIGIBILITY. To be eligible to
  receive money under the program, a child-care provider must:
               (1)  be a high-quality program as determined by the
  commission; and
               (2)  enter into an agreement described by Section
  319.007.
         Sec. 319.007.  PROGRAM AGREEMENTS. The commission shall
  create a standardized agreement for use by employers, employees,
  and providers participating in the program, to be completed and
  agreed to by each party. The agreement must include:
               (1)  the name, physical location, size, and industry of
  the employer;
               (2)  the name and phone number of the employer's point
  of contact;
               (3)  the name and physical location of the child-care
  provider;
               (4)  the name and phone number of the child-care
  provider's point of contact;
               (5)  the name and home address of the employee;
               (6)  the total amount of the child-care contribution to
  be paid by the employer to the provider, either directly or through
  a third-party vendor;
               (7)  the total amount of the state match to be paid to
  the provider, either directly or through a third-party vendor;
               (8)  the duration of the agreement;
               (9)  the frequency of the contribution to be made
  directly to the child-care provider; and
               (10)  demographic information about the employee.
         Sec. 319.008.  PROGRAM FUND. (a)  The commission shall
  establish and administer the program fund as a dedicated account in
  the general revenue fund.
         (b)  The following amounts shall be deposited in the fund:
               (1)  any money appropriated by the legislature for the
  fund for purposes of this chapter;
               (2)  interest earned on the investment of money in the
  fund;
               (3)  funds resulting from civil penalties collected
  under Section 319.011; and
               (4)  gifts, grants, and donations received for the
  fund.
         (c)  Money in the fund may be appropriated only to the Texas
  Workforce Commission for purposes authorized by this chapter.
         (d)  Any money remaining in the program fund at the end of a
  fiscal year is carried forward to the next fiscal year.
         (e)  In each fiscal year and to the greatest extent
  practicable, 25 percent of the total fund shall be distributed
  under agreements with employers with fewer than 50 full-time
  employees.
         (f)  During the fiscal year ending August 31, 2024, not more
  than 10 percent of the total fund shall be distributed to the
  commission to establish the program.  In each subsequent fiscal
  year, the commission may use money in the fund to administer the
  program as follows:
               (1)  if the total annual amount of the fund is more than
  $50 million, the commission may use not more than five percent of
  the total fund;
               (2)  if the total annual amount of the fund is more than
  $10 million but not more than $50 million, the commission may use
  not more than 10 percent of the total fund; and
               (3)  if the total annual amount of the fund is not more
  than $10 million, the commission may use not more than 15 percent of
  the total fund.
         Sec. 319.009.  STATE MATCH. (a) On verifying the
  eligibility of an employer, employee, and child-care provider and
  the agreement between the parties, the commission shall issue a
  state match in accordance with this section from the program fund to
  a child-care provider in accordance with the terms of the
  agreement.  The commission may distribute the state match money
  directly or through a third-party vendor, as applicable.
         (b)  The commission may approve an agreement and issue a
  state match only if there is sufficient money in the program fund to
  pay the costs under the agreement.
         (c)  The commission shall provide a state match equal to the
  contribution made by the employee's employer if the employee has a
  median household income that does not exceed the median state
  household income.
         (d)  If the employee's median household income exceeds the
  median state household income, the commission shall provide a state
  match as follows:
               (1)  90 percent of the employer's contribution for an
  employee whose household income is not more than 120 percent of the
  median household income;
               (2)  80 percent of the employer's contribution for an
  employee whose household income is greater than 120 percent but not
  more than 140 percent of the median household income;
               (3)  70 percent of the employer's contribution for an
  employee whose household income is greater than 140 percent but not
  more than 160 percent of the median household income;
               (4)  60 percent of the employer's contribution for an
  employee whose household income is greater than 160 percent but not
  more than 180 percent of the median household income; and
               (5)  50 percent of the employer's contribution for an
  employee whose household income is more than 180 percent of the
  median household income.
         (e)  A state match issued under the program and administered
  by the commission may not be considered compensation for an
  employee's service.
         Sec. 319.010.  REPORTS. (a) The commission shall publish
  and submit to the legislature a report detailing the efficacy of the
  program not later than December 15 of each even-numbered year.  The
  report must include the following information about the program:
               (1)  the amount appropriated to the program fund during
  the preceding state fiscal year;
               (2)  the total number of standardized agreements
  submitted by employers;
               (3)  the total amount of state matches paid out of the
  program fund, disaggregated by county;
               (4)  information regarding the size, geographical
  location, and industry type of employers who participated in the
  program;
               (5)  the number, license type, quality rating level,
  and geographical distribution of participating child-care
  providers;
               (6)  average cost for services charged by child-care
  providers participating in the program and information regarding
  the amount by which those costs have increased or decreased during
  the most recent reporting period compared with previous reporting
  periods;
               (7)  the number and total dollar value of agreements
  not approved by the commission; and
               (8)  demographic information regarding employees
  participating in the program.
         (b)  Not later than January 1, 2025, the commission shall
  publish and submit to the legislature a report detailing the
  commission's plan for implementing the program.  This subsection
  expires September 1, 2025.
         Sec. 319.011.  FALSE INFORMATION; CIVIL PENALTY. A person
  who intentionally provides false information to the commission for
  purposes of receiving the benefits of the program shall be subject
  to a civil penalty of not more than $500 per violation.  All money
  collected as a result of penalties assessed under this section
  shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the employee
  child-care assistance program fund.
         SECTION 2.  Not later than January 1, 2025, the Texas
  Workforce Commission shall adopt any rules necessary to administer
  the employer child-care contribution partnership program
  established under Chapter 319, Labor Code, as added by this Act.
         SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.