RECAP of the December 2024 EEC Board Meeting: Inter-Agency Early Education and Child Care Task Force and Options for Child Care Financial Assistance FY25 Reimbursement Rate Increases
At Neighborhood Villages, we prioritize keeping up with the policy landscape in the early education and care field, both across the country and in Massachusetts. That includes tuning-in to the monthly meetings of the Massachusetts Board of Early Education and Care (“EEC Board”), to stay apprised of updates and to identify opportunities for how we can work with government and other stakeholders to improve our early education and care system.
The primary topics of this month’s Department of Early Education and Care (EEC) Board meeting were: (1) an update on the work of the Inter-Agency Early Education and Child Care Task Force, and (2) a review of the options for implementation of reimbursement rate increases for Child Care Financial Assistance participants.
For additional detail on any of the meeting topics, see the slide presentation or watch the recording on YouTube.
Here’s what you need to know…
If You Are a Provider:
On December 18th, EEC announced the addition of a $4 million investment in large capital grants which can be used by not-for-profit child care providers for building or renovation of child care facilities. This funding comes on top of a $8.5 million investment earlier this year. The grants – from the Early Education and Out-of-School Time (EEOST) capital funding – can be used to acquire property or renovate a facility; they were awarded to six center-based child care providers that serve low-income families.
Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler, joined by Secretary Lauren Jones (Labor and Workforce Development) and Undersecretary Sarah Stanton (Economic Development), summarized the work of the Inter-Agency Early Education and Child Care Task Force in 2024, offered reflections, and shared next steps. Secretary Tutwiler recapped the Executive Order that created the Task Force, its goals, its values, and a high-level description of feedback received from the community during the course of the Task Force’s work. Secretary Jones reflected on her learnings from the Task Force, specifically as it relates to the early childhood education workforce and the respect they deserve as professional educators. Undersecretary Stanton reflected on the listening sessions from both the perspective of employers and of child care providers, noting how a successful economy is impossible without a functioning child care system. Secretary Tutwiler shared that immediate next steps include delivering a report to the Governor’s office and then releasing it publicly. The Task Force will remain in place for the next two years, and the work for 2025 and beyond includes:
Continuing the improvements and work underway across priorities at EEC and via the annual state budget process,
Implementation of immediately actionable inter-agency recommendations,
Refinement of longer-term inter-agency strategies,
Identification of additional new strategies, and
Reconstituting the Task Force committees to drive accountability and progress across initiatives.
If You are a Parent/Guardian or Child Care Advocate:
Senior EEC staff presented to the Board on its cost of care methodology, which informs reimbursement rate-setting for providers participating in the Child Care Financial Assistance (CCFA) program. EEC also presented the options regarding how to allocate funding appropriated for CCFA rates in Fiscal Year 2025. The Commissioner noted that the $22.5 million appropriation in this year’s budget does not stretch as far as it would have 5 years ago, when case loads of families with CCFA weren’t as high. As of December 2024, 68% of eligible EEC programs are participating in CCFA, up from 62% in March of this year and up from the around 50% historical average. Reimbursement rates are based on setting (center or FCC), EEC region (there are 6 regions, but last year, rates were consolidated so certain regions have the same rates), and age group (infant, toddler, preschool, and school age). As a result, there are 24 rates (16 for centers plus 8 for FCCs) that are subject to adjustment. As it developed two options for possible application of rate increases, EEC was grounded in the following principles:
Use a cost-based methodology,
Prioritize CCFA rates that are currently furthest from the cost of care,
Use a portion of funds for cost of living adjustment (COLA) for all to acknowledge increased cost across the board,
Distribute resources proportionally to where children with CCFA are (for example, 25% of children with CCFA statewide are in the Northeast region of the Commonwealth, compared to 12% in the Central region), and
Recognize differences between the compensation assumptions in the center-based (based on current salaries) and FCC cost model (based on more aspirational salaries).
With those guidelines in mind, the EEC team presented two options, the primary difference being how much of the funding will be used for COLA across all providers equally and how much will be used for targeted increases to bring certain rates closer to the cost of care. A summary of the options, as presented by EEC, follows:
Below is a different articulation of the impact of each proposed option by setting.
EEC shared that the Department’s position is to be slightly in favor of Option 1, as it does more to adjust inequities and support struggling programs and family access. The Board must vote on the options, which it will do in early 2025. In the meantime, EEC will take feedback from the field and continue to consult with SEIU 509 on the options for FCCs.
The next EEC Board meeting will take place in Boston on January 15, 2025.