BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 462
89R3579 MM-D	By: Kolkhorst
	Economic Development
	3/13/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

As evidenced by interim hearings in the Senate Natural Resources and Economic Development Committee, there is a significant issue with workers being able to obtain child-care for their children.

To make a meaningful change within existing resources, this bill establishes a priority line for child-care workers who are seeking child care placements themselves.

The list will be maintained by a local workforce development board, which will give priority to employees (and their children) if the parent is employed as a child-care service worker.

A child-care worker who is receiving priority service under this bill must still be working in child-care when their yearly re-determination occurs in order to maintain priority service.

As proposed, S.B. 462 amends current law relating to establishing a child-care services waiting list priority for the children of certain child-care workers.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter A, Chapter 302, Labor Code, by adding Section 302.0064, as follows:

Sec. 302.0064. CHILD-CARE SERVICES WAITING LIST PRIORITY FOR CHILD-CARE WORKERS. (a) Requires a local workforce development board that maintains a waiting list for child-care services to give a priority on the waiting list to children of child-care workers who are eligible for those services.

(b) Requires a child-care worker whose child receives a priority position on a waiting list as provided by Subsection (a) to continue to work as a child-care worker in the state until the first anniversary of the date the worker's child is placed in child-care services for which there was a waiting list.

(c) Requires the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC), if a child-care worker whose child received a priority under this section leaves the child-care workforce before the end of the time period described by Subsection (b), to review the circumstances of the child-care worker's employment and authorizes TWC to terminate child-care services for the worker's child.

SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 2025.