2021 -- S 0066

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LC000769

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - RHODE ISLAND EARLY EDUCATOR INVESTMENT ACT

     Introduced By: Senators Cano, Quezada, Pearson, Lawson, Gallo, Kallman, Acosta,
DiPalma, and Murray

     Date Introduced: January 19, 2021

     Referred To: Senate Labor

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Title 16 of the General Laws entitled "EDUCATION" is hereby amended by

adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 110

RHODE ISLAND EARLY EDUCATOR INVESTMENT ACT

     16-110-1. Short title.

     This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Rhode Island Early Educator

Investment Act."

     16-110-2. Legislative findings and purpose.

     The general assembly hereby finds that:

     (1) Young children's healthy brain development and learning depends on consistent,

nurturing care and enriching learning opportunities at home and in early care and education settings.

Starting at birth, day-to-day interactions with family members and early educators shape children’s

brain architecture upon which all future learning and development is built.

     (2) Many of the early educators and early childhood professionals in Rhode Island earn

very low wages even when they achieve credentials equivalent to kindergarten through grade

twelve (K-12) teachers and demonstrate effective practices. Childcare, family home visiting, and

early intervention programs across the state report difficulty attracting, developing, and retaining

effective early childhood professionals.

     (3) A 2019 statewide survey of early childhood professionals in Rhode Island found that

over forty percent (40%) of infant/toddler educators worry about having enough food to feed their

family and fifty percent (50%) worry about having enough money to pay for housing.

     (4) Almost one-third (1/3) of early educators have a second job to help make ends meet

and almost two-thirds (2/3) report that they plan to leave their early education job if the

compensation does not improve. And yet, most report that they enjoy working with children and

families and many have earned college credits and degrees in child development and early

education.

     (5) A landmark report issued by the National Academy of Science in 2015 found that

educators of young children, including infants and toddlers, need the same high level of knowledge

and competencies as teachers of older children and that educational qualifications and

compensation of early educators should be equivalent to those of kindergarten through grade twelve

(K-12) teachers.

     (6) According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median wage for a

childcare teacher in Rhode Island in 2018 was twelve dollars and fifteen cents ($12.15) per hour,

well below the state median wage of twenty dollars and twenty-one cents ($20.21) per hour and

significantly below the level of kindergarten teachers who had an average annual salary of sixty-

five thousand five hundred thirty dollars ($65,530). Rhode Island state agency data show that

median wages for early intervention providers and family home visitors range from thirteen dollars

and fifty cents ($13.50) per hour to twenty dollars ($20.00) per hour.

     (7) By enacting this chapter, the general assembly acknowledges the need to develop and

implement strategies to improve the compensation of early educators so programs can attract,

develop, and retain effective staff to care for and educate young children and provide family-

focused services.

     16-110-3. Establishment of a target wage scale.

     (a) The children’s cabinet established in §42-72.5-1 shall work in collaboration with the

Rhode Island department of education to establish goals to improve compensation, including a

common target wage scale for early educators linked to education levels above high school and

demonstrated competence working with children and families.

     (b) The target wage scale shall be developed to apply to educators working in childcare

centers, family childcare homes, family home visiting programs, and early intervention programs.

The target wage scale shall promote parity with kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12) public

school teachers for individuals with similar credentials.

     (c) In developing this target wage scale, the children’s cabinet and the department of

education may consider the findings and recommendations provided in the 2019 Moving the Needle

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on Compensation Task Force's report "Improving the Compensation and Retention of Effective

Infant/Toddler Educators in Rhode Island."

     16-110-4. Developing strategies to increase compensation of early educators.

     (a) Once the target wage scale has been established, the children’s cabinet and the

department of education shall design strategies and estimate the cost to close the gap between

current wages and the target wage scale, including parity with public school teaching staff or

individuals with similar credentials. In developing the plan, the following components shall be

considered:

     (1) Continuation and expansion of the existing statewide, comprehensive, research-based

early childhood workforce development scholarship program established under § 16-87-4 to

include stronger and ongoing support for compensation, such as implementation of wage

supplements or regular stipends for early educators to lift annual income to meet or exceed the

levels in the target wage scale. Consideration shall be given to the Infant/Toddler Educator

Education and Retention Awards demonstration program recommended by the Moving the Needle

on Compensation's Task Force.

     (2) Proposals to increase rates paid to early childhood programs that are adequate to enable

programs to pay early educators wages that meet or exceed the levels in the target wage scale.

     (3) Contracts to early childhood programs to expand the availability of high-quality

services for young children and families with educators in the program paid wages that meet or

exceed the levels in the target wage scale.

     (4) Registered apprenticeships for early educators that support completion of college

coursework and attainment of college credentials while providing opportunities to develop high-

quality practices through regular on-the-job coaching by master early educators. Apprenticeships

shall be designed and funded to enable successful participants to earn wages that meet or exceed

the levels in the target wage scale.

     16-110-5. Reporting.

     The children’s cabinet and the department of education shall report back to the governor

and general assembly on or before December 1, 2021 with a target wage scale and initial cost

estimates for public funding to close the wage gaps for early educators.

     SECTION 2. Section 42-72.5-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-72.5 entitled

"Children's Cabinet" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     42-72.5-2. Policy and goals.

     The children's cabinet shall:

     (1) Meet at least monthly to address all issues, especially those that cross departmental

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lines, and relate to children's needs and services;

     (2) Review, amend, and propose all interagency agreements necessary to provide

coordinated services to children;

     (3) Produce an annual comprehensive children's budget, to be submitted with other budget

documents to the general assembly;

     (4) Produce, by December 1, 2015, a comprehensive, five (5) year statewide plan and

proposed budget for an integrated state child service system. This plan shall be submitted to the

governor; the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate, and updated

annually thereafter;

     (5) [Deleted by P.L. 2015, ch. 141, art. 5, § 21].

     (6) Develop a strategic plan to coordinate and share data to foster interagency

communication, increase efficiency of service delivery, and simultaneously protect children's

legitimate expectations of privacy and rights to confidentiality. This shall include data-sharing with

research partners, pursuant to data-sharing agreements, that maintains data integrity and protects

the security and confidentiality of these records. Any such data-sharing agreements shall comply

with all privacy and security requirements of federal and state law and regulation governing the use

of such data. Any universal student identifier now in use by the state or developed in the future

shall not involve a student's social security number. ; and

     (7) Establish a target wage scale and design a strategic plan to close the gap between current

wages and the target wage scale, including parity with public school teaching staff or individuals

with similar credentials pursuant to the provisions of chapter 110 of title 16.

     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - RHODE ISLAND EARLY EDUCATOR INVESTMENT ACT

***

     This act would require the children’s cabinet, in conjunction with the department of

education, to develop and implement strategies to improve the compensation of early educators.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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