ARTICLE 13

RELATING TO HUMAN SERVICES

     SECTION 1.  Sections 40-5.2-10 and 40-5.2-20 of the General Laws in Chapter 40-

5.2 entitled “The Rhode Island Works Program” are hereby amended to read as follows:   

     40-5.2-10. Necessary requirements and conditions.

     The following requirements and conditions shall be necessary to establish

eligibility for the program. 

     (a) Citizenship, alienage, and residency requirements. 

     (1) A person shall be a resident of the State of Rhode Island. 

     (2) Effective October 1, 2008, a person shall be a United States citizen, or shall

meet the alienage requirements established in § 402(b) of the Personal Responsibility and

Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, PRWORA, Pub. L. No. 104-193 and as that

section may hereafter be amended [8 U.S.C. § 1612]; a person who is not a United States

citizen and does not meet the alienage requirements established in PRWORA, as amended,

is not eligible for cash assistance in accordance with this chapter. 

     (b) The family/assistance unit must meet any other requirements established by the

department of human services by rules and regulations adopted pursuant to the

Administrative Procedures Act, as necessary to promote the purpose and goals of this

chapter. 

     (c) Receipt of cash assistance is conditional upon compliance with all program

requirements. 

     (d) All individuals domiciled in this state shall be exempt from the application of

subdivision 115(d)(1)(A) of Pub. L. No. 104-193, the Personal Responsibility and Work

Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, PRWORA [21 U.S.C. § 862a], which makes any

individual ineligible for certain state and federal assistance if that individual has been

convicted under federal or state law of any offense that is classified as a felony by the law

of the jurisdiction and that has as an element the possession, use, or distribution of a

controlled substance as defined in § 102(6) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. §

802(6)). 

     (e) Individual employment plan as a condition of eligibility. 

     (1) Following receipt of an application, the department of human services shall

assess the financial conditions of the family, including the non-parent caretaker relative

who is applying for cash assistance for himself or herself as well as for the minor child(ren),

in the context of an eligibility determination. If a parent or non-parent caretaker relative is

unemployed or under-employed, the department shall conduct an initial assessment, taking

into account: 

     (A) The physical capacity, skills, education, work experience, health, safety, family

responsibilities, and place of residence of the individual; and 

     (B) The child care and supportive services required by the applicant to avail himself

or herself of employment opportunities and/or work readiness programs. 

     (2) On the basis of this assessment, the department of human services and the

department of labor and training, as appropriate, in consultation with the applicant, shall

develop an individual employment plan for the family that requires the individual to

participate in the intensive employment services. Intensive employment services shall be

defined as the work requirement activities in § 40-5.2-12(g) and (i). 

     (3) The director, or his or her designee, may assign a case manager to an

applicant/participant, as appropriate. 

     (4) The department of labor and training and the department of human services in

conjunction with the participant shall develop a revised individual employment plan that

shall identify employment objectives, taking into consideration factors above, and shall

include a strategy for immediate employment and for preparing for, finding, and retaining

employment consistent, to the extent practicable, with the individual's career objectives. 

     (5) The individual employment plan must include the provision for the participant

to engage in work requirements as outlined in § 40-5.2-12. 

     (6)(i) The participant shall attend and participate immediately in intensive

assessment and employment services as the first step in the individual employment plan,

unless temporarily exempt from this requirement in accordance with this chapter. Intensive

assessment and employment services shall be defined as the work requirement activities in

§ 40-5.2-12(g) and (i). 

     (ii) Parents under age twenty (20) without a high school diploma or general

equivalency diploma (GED) shall be referred to special teen-parent programs that will

provide intensive services designed to assist teen parents to complete high school education

or GED, and to continue approved work plan activities in accord with Rhode Island works

program requirements. 

     (7) The applicant shall become a participant in accordance with this chapter at the

time the individual employment plan is signed and entered into. 

     (8) Applicants and participants of the Rhode Island works program shall agree to

comply with the terms of the individual employment plan, and shall cooperate fully with

the steps established in the individual employment plan, including the work requirements. 

     (9) The department of human services has the authority under the chapter to require

attendance by the applicant/participant, either at the department of human services or at the

department of labor and training, at appointments deemed necessary for the purpose of

having the applicant enter into and become eligible for assistance through the Rhode Island

works program. The appointments include, but are not limited to: the initial interview,

orientation and assessment; job readiness; and job search. Attendance is required as a

condition of eligibility for cash assistance in accordance with rules and regulations

established by the department. 

     (10) As a condition of eligibility for assistance pursuant to this chapter, the

applicant/participant shall be obligated to keep appointments; attend orientation meetings

at the department of human services and/or the Rhode Island department of labor and

training; participate in any initial assessments or appraisals; and comply with all the terms

of the individual employment plan in accordance with department of human services rules

and regulations.

     (11) A participant, including a parent or non-parent caretaker relative included in

the cash assistance payment, shall not voluntarily quit a job or refuse a job unless there is

good cause as defined in this chapter or the department's rules and regulations. 

     (12) A participant who voluntarily quits or refuses a job without good cause, as

defined in § 40-5.2-12(l), while receiving cash assistance in accordance with this chapter,

shall be sanctioned in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the

department. 

     (f) Resources. 

     (1) The family or assistance unit's countable resources shall be less than the

allowable resource limit established by the department in accordance with this chapter. 

     (2) No family or assistance unit shall be eligible for assistance payments if the

combined value of its available resources (reduced by any obligations or debts with respect

to such resources) exceeds one five thousand dollars ($1,000) ($5000). 

     (3) For purposes of this subsection, the following shall not be counted as resources

of the family/assistance unit in the determination of eligibility for the works program: 

     (i) The home owned and occupied by a child, parent, relative, or other individual; 

     (ii) Real property owned by a husband and wife as tenants by the entirety, if the

property is not the home of the family and if the spouse of the applicant refuses to sell his

or her interest in the property; 

     (iii) Real property that the family is making a good faith effort to dispose of,

however, any cash assistance payable to the family for any such period shall be conditioned

upon such disposal of the real property within six (6) months of the date of application and

any payments of assistance for that period shall (at the time of disposal) be considered

overpayments to the extent that they would not have occurred at the beginning of the period

for which the payments were made. All overpayments are debts subject to recovery in

accordance with the provisions of the chapter; 

     (iv) Income-producing property other than real estate including, but not limited to,

equipment such as farm tools, carpenter's tools, and vehicles used in the production of

goods or services that the department determines are necessary for the family to earn a

living; 

     (v) One vehicle for each adult household member, but not to exceed two (2)

vehicles per household, and in addition, a vehicle used primarily for income-producing

purposes such as, but not limited to, a taxi, truck, or fishing boat; a vehicle used as a family's

home; a vehicle that annually produces income consistent with its fair market value, even

if only used on a seasonal basis; a vehicle necessary to transport a family member with a

disability where the vehicle is specially equipped to meet the specific needs of the person

with a disability or if the vehicle is a special type of vehicle that makes it possible to

transport the person with a disability; 

     (vi) Household furnishings and appliances, clothing, personal effects, and

keepsakes of limited value; 

     (vii) Burial plots (one for each child, relative, and other individual in the assistance

unit) and funeral arrangements; 

     (viii) For the month of receipt and the following month, any refund of federal

income taxes made to the family by reason of § 32 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,

26 U.S.C. § 32 (relating to earned income tax credit), and any payment made to the family

by an employer under § 3507 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 3507

[repealed] (relating to advance payment of such earned income credit); 

     (ix) The resources of any family member receiving supplementary security income

assistance under the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 301 et seq.; 

     (x) Any veteran's disability pension benefits received as a result of any disability

sustained by the veteran while in the military service. 

     (g) Income. 

     (1) Except as otherwise provided for herein, in determining eligibility for and the

amount of cash assistance to which a family is entitled under this chapter, the income of a

family includes all of the money, goods, and services received or actually available to any

member of the family. 

     (2) In determining the eligibility for and the amount of cash assistance to which a

family/assistance unit is entitled under this chapter, income in any month shall not include

the first one three hundred seventy dollars ($170) ($300) of gross earnings plus fifty percent

(50%) of the gross earnings of the family in excess of one three hundred seventy dollars

($170) ($300) earned during the month. 

     (3) The income of a family shall not include: 

     (i) The first fifty dollars ($50.00) in child support received in any month from each

noncustodial parent of a child plus any arrearages in child support (to the extent of the first

fifty dollars ($50.00) per month multiplied by the number of months in which the support

has been in arrears) that are paid in any month by a noncustodial parent of a child; 

     (ii) Earned income of any child; 

     (iii) Income received by a family member who is receiving Supplemental Security

Income (SSI) assistance under Title XVI of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1381 et

seq.; 

     (iv) The value of assistance provided by state or federal government or private

agencies to meet nutritional needs, including: value of USDA-donated foods; value of

supplemental food assistance received under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, as amended,

and the special food service program for children under Title VII, nutrition program for the

elderly, of the Older Americans Act of 1965 as amended, and the value of food stamps; 

     (v) Value of certain assistance provided to undergraduate students, including any

grant or loan for an undergraduate student for educational purposes made or insured under

any loan program administered by the United States Commissioner of Education (or the

Rhode Island council on postsecondary education or the Rhode Island division of higher

education assistance); 

     (vi) Foster care payments; 

     (vii) Home energy assistance funded by state or federal government or by a

nonprofit organization; 

     (viii) Payments for supportive services or reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses

made to foster grandparents, senior health aides, or senior companions and to persons

serving in SCORE and ACE and any other program under Title II and Title III of the

Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973, 42 U.S.C. § 5000 et seq.; 

     (ix) Payments to volunteers under AmeriCorps VISTA as defined in the

department's rules and regulations; 

     (x) Certain payments to native Americans; payments distributed per capita to, or

held in trust for, members of any Indian Tribe under P.L. 92-254, 25 U.S.C. § 1261 et seq.,

P.L. 93-134, 25 U.S.C. § 1401 et seq., or P.L. 94-540; receipts distributed to members of

certain Indian tribes which are referred to in § 5 of P.L. 94-114, 25 U.S.C. § 459d, that

became effective October 17, 1975; 

     (xi) Refund from the federal and state earned income tax credit; 

     (xii) The value of any state, local, or federal government rent or housing subsidy,

provided that this exclusion shall not limit the reduction in benefits provided for in the

payment standard section of this chapter; 

     (xiii) The earned income of any adult family member who gains employment while

an active RI Works household member. This income is excluded for the first six (6) months

of employment in which the income is earned, or until the household's total gross income

exceeds one hundred eighty-five percent (185%) of the federal poverty level, unless the

household reaches its forty-eight-month (48) time limit first;

     (xiv) Any veteran's disability pension benefits received as a result of any disability

sustained by the veteran while in the military service. 

     (4) The receipt of a lump sum of income shall affect participants for cash assistance

in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the department. 

     (h) Time limit on the receipt of cash assistance. 

     (1) On or after January 1, 2020, no cash assistance shall be provided, pursuant to

this chapter, to a family or assistance unit that includes an adult member who has received

cash assistance for a total of forty-eight (48) months (whether or not consecutive), to

include any time receiving any type of cash assistance in any other state or territory of the

United States of America as defined herein. Provided further, in no circumstances other

than provided for in subsection (h)(3) with respect to certain minor children, shall cash

assistance be provided pursuant to this chapter to a family or assistance unit that includes

an adult member who has received cash assistance for a total of a lifetime limit of forty-

eight (48) months. 

     (2) Cash benefits received by a minor dependent child shall not be counted toward

their lifetime time limit for receiving benefits under this chapter should that minor child

apply for cash benefits as an adult. 

     (3) Certain minor children not subject to time limit. This section regarding the

lifetime time limit for the receipt of cash assistance, shall not apply only in the instances

of a minor child(ren) living with a parent who receives SSI benefits and a minor child(ren)

living with a responsible adult non-parent caretaker relative who is not in the cash

assistance payment. 

     (4) Receipt of family cash assistance in any other state or territory of the United

States of America shall be determined by the department of human services and shall

include family cash assistance funded in whole or in part by Temporary Assistance for

Needy Families (TANF) funds [Title IV-A of the federal Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. §

601 et seq.] and/or family cash assistance provided under a program similar to the Rhode

Island families work and opportunity program or the federal TANF program. 

     (5) (i) The department of human services shall mail a notice to each assistance unit

when the assistance unit has six (6) months of cash assistance remaining and each month

thereafter until the time limit has expired. The notice must be developed by the department

of human services and must contain information about the lifetime time limit, the number

of months the participant has remaining, the hardship extension policy, the availability of

a post-employment-and-closure bonus; and any other information pertinent to a family or

an assistance unit nearing the forty-eight-month (48) lifetime time limit. 

     (ii) For applicants who have less than six (6) months remaining in the forty-eight-

month (48) lifetime time limit because the family or assistance unit previously received

cash assistance in Rhode Island or in another state, the department shall notify the applicant

of the number of months remaining when the application is approved and begin the process

required in subsection (h)(5)(i). 

     (6) If a cash assistance recipient family was closed pursuant to Rhode Island's

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program (federal TANF described in Title IV-

A of the Federal Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.), formerly entitled the Rhode

Island family independence program, more specifically under § 40-5.1-9(2)(c) [repealed],

due to sanction because of failure to comply with the cash assistance

program requirements; and that recipient family received forty-eight (48) months of cash

benefits in accordance with the family independence program, then that recipient family is

not able to receive further cash assistance for his/her family, under this chapter, except

under hardship exceptions. 

     (7) The months of state or federally funded cash assistance received by a recipient

family since May 1, 1997, under Rhode Island's Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

Program (federal TANF described in Title IV-A of the Federal Social Security Act, 42

U.S.C. § 601 et seq.), formerly entitled the Rhode Island family independence program,

shall be countable toward the time-limited cash assistance described in this chapter. 

     (i) Time limit on the receipt of cash assistance. 

     (1) No cash assistance shall be provided, pursuant to this chapter, to a family

assistance unit in which an adult member has received cash assistance for a total of sixty

(60) months (whether or not consecutive) to include any time receiving any type of cash

assistance in any other state or territory of the United States as defined herein effective

August 1, 2008. Provided further, that no cash assistance shall be provided to a family in

which an adult member has received assistance for twenty-four (24) consecutive months

unless the adult member has a rehabilitation employment plan as provided in § 40-5.2-

12(g)(5). 

     (2) Effective August 1, 2008, no cash assistance shall be provided pursuant to this

chapter to a family in which a child has received cash assistance for a total of sixty (60)

months (whether or not consecutive) if the parent is ineligible for assistance under this

chapter pursuant to subsection (a)(2) to include any time they received any type of cash

assistance in any other state or territory of the United States as defined herein. 

     (j) Hardship exceptions. 

     (1) The department may extend an assistance unit's or family's cash assistance

beyond the time limit, by reason of hardship; provided, however, that the number of

families to be exempted by the department with respect to their time limit under this

subsection shall not exceed twenty percent (20%) of the average monthly number of

families to which assistance is provided for under this chapter in a fiscal year; provided,

however, that to the extent now or hereafter permitted by federal law, any waiver granted

under § 40-5.2-34, for domestic violence, shall not be counted in determining the twenty

percent (20%) maximum under this section. 

     (2) Parents who receive extensions to the time limit due to hardship must have and

comply with employment plans designed to remove or ameliorate the conditions that

warranted the extension. 

     (k) Parents under eighteen (18) years of age. 

     (1) A family consisting of a parent who is under the age of eighteen (18), and who

has never been married, and who has a child; or a family consisting of a woman under the

age of eighteen (18) who is at least six (6) months pregnant, shall be eligible for cash

assistance only if the family resides in the home of an adult parent, legal guardian, or other

adult relative. The assistance shall be provided to the adult parent, legal guardian, or other

adult relative on behalf of the individual and child unless otherwise authorized by the

department. 

     (2) This subsection shall not apply if the minor parent or pregnant minor has no

parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative who is living and/or whose whereabouts are

unknown; or the department determines that the physical or emotional health or safety of

the minor parent, or his or her child, or the pregnant minor, would be jeopardized if he or

she was required to live in the same residence as his or her parent, legal guardian, or other

adult relative (refusal of a parent, legal guardian, or other adult relative to allow the minor

parent or his or her child, or a pregnant minor, to live in his or her home shall constitute a

presumption that the health or safety would be so jeopardized); or the minor parent or

pregnant minor has lived apart from his or her own parent or legal guardian for a period of

at least one year before either the birth of any child to a minor parent or the onset of the

pregnant minor's pregnancy; or there is good cause, under departmental regulations, for

waiving the subsection; and the individual resides in a supervised supportive-living

arrangement to the extent available. 

     (3) For purposes of this section, "supervised supportive-living arrangement" means

an arrangement that requires minor parents to enroll and make satisfactory progress in a

program leading to a high school diploma or a general education development certificate,

and requires minor parents to participate in the adolescent parenting program designated

by the department, to the extent the program is available; and provides rules and regulations

that ensure regular adult supervision. 

     (l) Assignment and cooperation. As a condition of eligibility for cash and medical

assistance under this chapter, each adult member, parent, or caretaker relative of the

family/assistance unit must: 

     (1) Assign to the state any rights to support for children within the family from any

person that the family member has at the time the assignment is executed or may have

while receiving assistance under this chapter; 

     (2) Consent to and cooperate with the state in establishing the paternity and in

establishing and/or enforcing child support and medical support orders for all children in

the family or assistance unit in accordance with title 15 of the general laws, as amended,

unless the parent or caretaker relative is found to have good cause for refusing to comply

with the requirements of this subsection. 

     (3) Absent good cause, as defined by the department of human services through the

rulemaking process, for refusing to comply with the requirements of subsections (l)(1) and

(l)(2), cash assistance to the family shall be reduced by twenty-five percent (25%) until the

adult member of the family who has refused to comply with the requirements of this

subsection consents to and cooperates with the state in accordance with the requirements

of this subsection. 

     (4) As a condition of eligibility for cash and medical assistance under this chapter,

each adult member, parent, or caretaker relative of the family/assistance unit must consent

to and cooperate with the state in identifying and providing information to assist the state

in pursuing any third party who may be liable to pay for care and services under Title XIX

of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1396 et seq. 

     40-5.2-20.  Childcare assistance — Families or assistance units eligible.

     (a) The department shall provide appropriate child care to every participant who is eligible

for cash assistance and who requires child care in order to meet the work requirements in

accordance with this chapter.

     (b) Low-income child care. The department shall provide child care to all other working

families with incomes at or below one hundred eighty percent (180%) two hundred percent (200%)

of the federal poverty level if, and to the extent, these other families require child care in order to

work at paid employment as defined in the department's rules and regulations. Beginning October

1, 2013, the The department shall also provide child care to families with incomes below one

hundred eighty percent (180%) two hundred percent (200%) of the federal poverty level if, and to

the extent, these families require child care to participate on a short-term basis, as defined in the

department's rules and regulations, in training, apprenticeship, internship, on-the-job training, work

experience, work immersion, or other job-readiness/job-attachment program sponsored or funded

by the human resource investment council (governor's workforce board) or state agencies that are

part of the coordinated program system pursuant to § 42-102-11. Effective from January 1, 2021,

through June 30, 2022, the department shall also provide childcare assistance to families with

incomes below one hundred eighty percent (180%) of the federal poverty level when such

assistance is necessary for a member of these families to enroll or maintain enrollment in a Rhode

Island public institution of higher education provided that eligibility to receive funding is capped

when expenditures reach $200,000 for this provision.  Effective July 1, 2022, the department shall

also provide childcare assistance to families with incomes below two hundred percent (200%) of

the federal poverty level when such assistance is necessary for a member of these families to enroll

or maintain enrollment in a Rhode Island public institution of higher education.  

      (c) No family/assistance unit shall be eligible for childcare assistance under this chapter if

the combined value of its liquid resources exceeds one million dollars ($1,000,000), which

corresponds to the amount permitted by the federal government under the state plan and set forth

in the administrative rulemaking process by the department. Liquid resources are defined as any

interest(s) in property in the form of cash or other financial instruments or accounts that are readily

convertible to cash or cash equivalents. These include, but are not limited to: cash, bank, credit

union, or other financial institution savings, checking, and money market accounts; certificates of

deposit or other time deposits; stocks; bonds; mutual funds; and other similar financial instruments

or accounts. These do not include educational savings accounts, plans, or programs; retirement

accounts, plans, or programs; or accounts held jointly with another adult, not including a spouse.

The department is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to determine the ownership and

source of the funds in the joint account.

     (d) As a condition of eligibility for childcare assistance under this chapter, the parent or

caretaker relative of the family must consent to, and must cooperate with, the department in

establishing paternity, and in establishing and/or enforcing child support and medical support

orders for any children in the family receiving appropriate child care under this section in

accordance with the applicable sections of title 15, as amended, unless the parent or caretaker

relative is found to have good cause for refusing to comply with the requirements of this subsection.

     (e) For purposes of this section, "appropriate child care" means child care, including infant,

toddler, preschool, nursery school, and school-age, that is provided by a person or organization

qualified, approved, and authorized to provide the care by the state agency or agencies designated

to make the determinations in accordance with the provisions set forth herein.

     (f) (1) Families with incomes below one hundred percent (100%) of the applicable federal

poverty level guidelines shall be provided with free child care. Families with incomes greater than

one hundred percent (100%) and less than one hundred eighty percent (180%) two hundred percent

(200%) of the applicable federal poverty guideline shall be required to pay for some portion of the

child care they receive, according to a sliding-fee scale adopted by the department in the

department's rules, not to exceed seven percent (7%) of income as defined in subsection (h) of this

section.

     (2) Families who are receiving childcare assistance and who become ineligible for

childcare assistance as a result of their incomes exceeding one hundred eighty percent (180%) two

hundred percent (200%) of the applicable federal poverty guidelines shall continue to be eligible

for childcare assistance until their incomes exceed two hundred twenty-five percent (225%) of the

applicable federal poverty guidelines. To be eligible, the families must continue to pay for some

portion of the child care they receive, as indicated in a sliding-fee scale adopted in the department's

rules, not to exceed seven percent (7%) of income as defined in subsection (h) of this section, and

in accordance with all other eligibility standards.

     (g) In determining the type of child care to be provided to a family, the department shall

take into account the cost of available childcare options; the suitability of the type of care available

for the child; and the parent's preference as to the type of child care.

     (h) For purposes of this section, "income" for families receiving cash assistance under §

40-5.2-11 means gross, earned income and unearned income, subject to the income exclusions in

§§ 40-5.2-10(g)(2) and 40-5.2-10(g)(3), and income for other families shall mean gross, earned and

unearned income as determined by departmental regulations.

     (i) The caseload estimating conference established by chapter 17 of title 35 shall forecast

the expenditures for child care in accordance with the provisions of § 35-17-1.

     (j) In determining eligibility for childcare assistance for children of members of reserve

components called to active duty during a time of conflict, the department shall freeze the family

composition and the family income of the reserve component member as it was in the month prior

to the month of leaving for active duty. This shall continue until the individual is officially

discharged from active duty.

     SECTION 2. Section 40-6.2-1.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 40-6.2 entitled

“Childcare-State Subsidies” is hereby amended to read as follows:

     40-6.2-1.1.  Rates established.

     (a) Through June 30, 2015, subject to the payment limitations in subsection (c), the

maximum reimbursement rates to be paid by the departments of human services and children, youth

and families for licensed childcare centers and licensed family childcare providers shall be based

on the following schedule of the 75th percentile of the 2002 weekly market rates adjusted for the

average of the 75th percentile of the 2002 and the 2004 weekly market rates:

75th

LICENSED PERCENTILE

CHILDCARE OF WEEKLY

CENTERS MARKET RATE

INFANT $182.00

PRESCHOOL $150.00

SCHOOL-AGE $135.00

75th

LICENSED FAMILY PERCENTILE

CHILDCARE OF WEEKLY

PROVIDERS MARKET RATE

INFANT $150.00

PRESCHOOL $150.00

SCHOOL-AGE $135.00

     Effective July 1, 2015, subject to the payment limitations in subsection (c), the maximum

reimbursement rates to be paid by the departments of human services and children, youth and

families for licensed childcare centers and licensed family childcare providers shall be based on the

above schedule of the 75th percentile of the 2002 weekly market rates adjusted for the average of

the 75th percentile of the 2002 and the 2004 weekly market rates. These rates shall be increased by

ten dollars ($10.00) per week for infant/toddler care provided by licensed family childcare

providers and license-exempt providers and then the rates for all providers for all age groups shall

be increased by three percent (3%). For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2018, licensed childcare

centers shall be reimbursed a maximum weekly rate of one hundred ninety-three dollars and sixty-

four cents ($193.64) for infant/toddler care and one hundred sixty-one dollars and seventy-one

cents ($161.71) for preschool-age children.

     (b) Effective July l, 2018, subject to the payment limitations in subsection (c), the

maximum infant/toddler and preschool-age reimbursement rates to be paid by the departments of

human services and children, youth and families for licensed childcare centers shall be

implemented in a tiered manner, reflective of the quality rating the provider has achieved within

the state's quality rating system outlined in § 42-12-23.1.

     (1) For infant/toddler child care, tier one shall be reimbursed two and one-half percent

(2.5%) above the FY 2018 weekly amount, tier two shall be reimbursed five percent (5%) above

the FY 2018 weekly amount, tier three shall be reimbursed thirteen percent (13%) above the FY

2018 weekly amount, tier four shall be reimbursed twenty percent (20%) above the FY 2018 weekly

amount, and tier five shall be reimbursed thirty-three percent (33%) above the FY 2018 weekly

amount.

     (2) For preschool reimbursement rates, tier one shall be reimbursed two and one-half

(2.5%) percent above the FY 2018 weekly amount, tier two shall be reimbursed five percent (5%)

above the FY 2018 weekly amount, tier three shall be reimbursed ten percent (10%) above the FY

2018 weekly amount, tier four shall be reimbursed thirteen percent (13%) above the FY 2018

weekly amount, and tier five shall be reimbursed twenty-one percent (21%) above the FY 2018

weekly amount.

     (c) [Deleted by P.L. 2019, ch. 88, art. 13, § 4.]

     (d) By June 30, 2004, and biennially through June 30, 2014, the department of labor and

training shall conduct an independent survey or certify an independent survey of the then-current

weekly market rates for child care in Rhode Island and shall forward the weekly market rate survey

to the department of human services. The next survey shall be conducted by June 30, 2016, and

triennially thereafter. The departments of human services and labor and training will jointly

determine the survey criteria including, but not limited to, rate categories and sub-categories.

     (e) In order to expand the accessibility and availability of quality child care, the department

of human services is authorized to establish, by regulation, alternative or incentive rates of

reimbursement for quality enhancements, innovative or specialized child care, and alternative

methodologies of childcare delivery, including nontraditional delivery systems and collaborations.

     (f) Effective January 1, 2007, all childcare providers have the option to be paid every two

(2) weeks and have the option of automatic direct deposit and/or electronic funds transfer of

reimbursement payments.

     (g) Effective July 1, 2019, the maximum infant/toddler reimbursement rates to be paid by

the departments of human services and children, youth and families for licensed family childcare

providers shall be implemented in a tiered manner, reflective of the quality rating the provider has

achieved within the state's quality rating system outlined in § 42-12-23.1. Tier one shall be

reimbursed two percent (2%) above the prevailing base rate for step 1 and step 2 providers, three

percent (3%) above prevailing base rate for step 3 providers, and four percent (4%) above the

prevailing base rate for step 4 providers; tier two shall be reimbursed five percent (5%) above the

prevailing base rate; tier three shall be reimbursed eleven percent (11%) above the prevailing base

rate; tier four shall be reimbursed fourteen percent (14%) above the prevailing base rate; and tier

five shall be reimbursed twenty-three percent (23%) above the prevailing base rate.

     (h) Through December 31, 2021, the maximum reimbursement rates paid by the

departments of human services, and children, youth and families to licensed childcare centers shall

be consistent with the enhanced emergency rates provided as of June 1, 2021, as follows:

      Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4

Tier 5

     Infant/Toddler $257.54 $257.54 $257.54 $257.54

$273.00

     Preschool Age $195.67 $195.67 $195.67 $195.67

$260.00

     School Age $200.00 $200.00 $200.00 $200.00

$245.00

     The maximum reimbursement rates paid by the departments of human services, and

children, youth and families to licensed family childcare providers shall be consistent with the

enhanced emergency rates provided as of June 1, 2021, as follows:

      Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4

Tier 5

     Infant/Toddler $224.43 $224.43 $224.43 $224.43

$224.43

     Preschool Age $171.45 $171.45 $171.45 $171.45

$171.45

     School Age $162.30 $162.30 $162.30 $162.30

$162.30

     (i) Effective January 1, 2022, the maximum reimbursement rates to be paid by the

departments of human services and children, youth and families for licensed childcare centers shall

be implemented in a tiered manner, reflective of the quality rating the provider has achieved within

the state's quality rating system outlined in § 42-12-23.1. Maximum weekly rates shall be

reimbursed as follows:

     LICENSED

     CHILDCARE

     CENTERS Tier One Tier Two Tier Three Tier Four Tier

Five

     Infant/Toddler $236.36 $244.88 $257.15 $268.74

$284.39

     Preschool $207.51 $212.27 $218.45 $223.50

$231.39

     School-Age $180.38 $182.77 $185.17 $187.57

$189.97

     The maximum reimbursement rates for licensed family childcare providers paid by the

departments of human services, and children, youth and families is determined through collective

bargaining. The maximum reimbursement rates for infant/toddler and preschool age children paid

to licensed family childcare providers by both departments is implemented in a tiered manner that

reflects the quality rating the provider has achieved in accordance with § 42-12-23.1.

     (j) Effective July 1, 2022, the maximum reimbursement rates to be paid by the departments

of human services and children, youth and families for licensed childcare centers shall be

implemented in a tiered manner, reflective of the quality rating the provider has achieved within

the state's quality rating system outlined in § 42-12-23.1. Maximum weekly rates shall be

reimbursed as follows:

     LICENSED

     CHILDCARE

     CENTERS Tier One Tier Two Tier Three Tier Four Tier

Five

     Infant/Toddler $260 $265 $270 $289 $300

     Preschool $217 $220 $225 $250 $260

     School-Age $188 $196 $200 $205 $210

     The maximum reimbursement rates for licensed family childcare providers paid by the

departments of human services, and children, youth and families is determined through collective

bargaining. The maximum reimbursement rates for infant/toddler and preschool age children paid

to licensed family childcare providers by both departments is implemented in a tiered manner that

reflects the quality rating the provider has achieved in accordance with § 42-12-23.1.

     SECTION 3. This Article shall take effect July 1, 2022.