Judge restores child care funds

Published 10:47 am Thursday, July 14, 2011

There’s good news for child care providers and working parents: Child care funding is back.

The judge overseeing appeals from the Minnesota government shutdown has restored funding for a child-care program that serves nearly 16,000 children in more than 9,000 low-income families.

Ramey County Chief Judge Kathleen Gearin accepted a recommendation Wednesday from special master Kathleen Blatz to reinstate child care funded through the state Basic Sliding Fee program.

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“In terms of impact, it gives us huge relief,” said Kathy Stutzman, Project and Policy Development Director for the Parenting Resource Center. “The families that this impacts had until tomorrow to really figure out what they were going to do next week.”

PRC officials have rescinded the four planned layoffs set for Friday because of the Basic Sliding Fee program’s restoration.

The court earlier restored child care services funded with federal money. Blatz cited testimony that the care programs are so complex that it’s impossible to separate the federal from state funds, so the state needs to either make all child care assistance payments, or none at all.

The Children’s Center Director Kim Nelson was thrilled to hear the news. She said about 30 percent of her facility’s children were on that program.

Nelson said the last two weeks at her facility have been stressful for staff and the families affected.

Before the funding was approved, she and her staff had to give the affected parents their bills and let them decide how they wanted to handle it.

She said the center had 15 children who had to be terminated because their parents were unable to pay for the entire service without the assistance.

She argued that the issue was bigger than simply not providing child care assistance. It was also a workplace issue, an economic development issue and even an education issue.

If child care assistance was cut off, parents couldn’t work, and the students likewise wouldn’t be properly prepared to enter kindergarten.

“Child care assistance does have an impact on employees,” said Freeborn County Department of Human Services Director Brian Buhmann, echoing his relief from hearing the child care assistance funding was reinstated.

He said he has seen firsthand the effects the shutdown has had because the people who have been affected by this have come into his office seeking help.

Nelson said prior to Wednesday’s decision, she also had given a layoff notice to two seasonal employees and all of her 37 other staff members were taking three-hour cuts.

She noted while she is happy to hear the news, it is still unclear about when payments will come.

The Service Employees International Union Local 284 Kids First program, which petitioned Blatz along with other groups, says family child care providers are breathing a sigh of relief.

—The Associated Press contributed to this report.