RCW 43.41.800 State employee child care survey. (Expires December 31, 2020.)

(1) The office of financial management, within existing resources, in partnership with the department of commerce, the office of innovation, alignment, and accountability within the department of children, youth, and families, and the health care authority, shall develop a survey for state executive branch agency employees in order to better understand issues affecting child care access and affordability for state employees' families.

(2) The survey must, at a minimum:

(a) Identify the number of children age twelve and under of state employees who are receiving care from child care or early learning providers. The survey must allow employees to differentiate, to the extent possible, the type of child care or early learning provider serving the family, including:

(i) Licensed and certified child care centers and family homes;

(ii) License-exempt providers who care for children for four hours or less per day;

(iii) Family, friend, and neighbor caregivers;

(iv) Nannies and au pairs;

(v) Religious organizations providing care;

(vi) Entities providing before-and-after school care;

(vii) Employer-supported child care; and

(viii) Other formal and informal networks of care;

(b) Identify the number of children age twelve and under whose care is paid for in whole or in part with state subsidies;

(c) Allow employees to describe challenges they face in accessing or paying for child care; and

(d) Ask employees to provide their total annual household income.

(3) The survey must be made available to all state executive branch agency employees with children age twelve and under no later than January 15, 2020.

(4) The department of commerce, in collaboration with the office of financial management and the office of innovation, alignment, and accountability within the department of children, youth, and families, shall analyze this data and report as part of the larger industry analysis described in RCW 43.330.529. In addition to the information required under RCW 43.330.529, the report must also include:

(a) A breakdown of:

(i) The number of children of state executive branch agency employees receiving care based on provider type;

(ii) The number of children of state executive branch agency employees receiving state subsidized care; and

(iii) The number of children of state executive branch agency employees receiving exclusively private pay care;

(b) An analysis of the relationship between family child care choices and household income bracket; and

(c) A narrative summary of the challenges that state executive branch agency employees face in accessing or paying for child care.

(5) This section expires December 31, 2020.

[ 2019 c 368 § 3.]

NOTES:

Findings—Intent—Short title—2019 c 368: See notes following RCW 43.330.525.