Day Care

The 1996 welfare reform that created Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) consolidated several different sources of federal funding for child care into the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). CCDBG provides a block grant to states for child care assistance in order to help low-income working families, families receiving public assistance, and those enrolled in training or education become and remain independent. States can use these funds to help move families out of poverty and stay off welfare by enabling them to work. Specifically, CCDBG helps to defray the costs of child care by providing eligible low-income families with subsidies. For many parents, receiving child care is essential in order to stay employed. For families receiving TANF benefits, child care is pivotal to a parent's ability to make a smooth transition from welfare to employment.

Rensselaer County Day Care Unit
Important Numbers

Should you need to speak with someone from the Daycare Unit please call:

How to apply for Daycare Funding

You may be eligible to receive funding to assist in the costs of your daycare. As you know, daycare for your child(ren) is important to keep your job. Whether your case is closing for Family Assistance or if you are working, we need the following information to determine if you can receive help:

1. If you get paid every other week, we need two copies consecutive current paystubs. If you get paid every week, we need four copies consecutive current paystubs. If your job hasn't started yet, you can get a letter from your employer stating how many hours per week you will be working and how much you will be paid per hour.
2. If you are a single parent you need to get monetary child support from the other parent of the child(ren). This is a requirement; thus you must provide us with court documents. We are not able to open your case without this information, so if you do not have a support order in place, be prepared to establish one. If you do have a support order but the parent is not paying, you must file a violation of support in family court. Phone numbers which may be helpful for you are:
   
   

   If you…	Then call…
   have been on any type of public assistance in the past and DSS set up your support for you…	Support Collection Unit 1-888-208-4485
   have not been on public assistance and have never gone to court for support	270-3761 Family Court 1504 5th Avenue Troy NY 12180

3. If you have a court order, and it does not include daycare costs, you must have it modified.
4. Finally, we need copies of birth certificates for the children who need daycare. If you and the children have been on public assistance we can access this information for you (unless the child was not on your case).

Once you have compiled the above documents, next you must complete the attached application. We need to know who will be providing care for your children. If you are using a babysitter you must enroll he/she by completing a packet of information and sending it to The Capital District Child Care Coordinating Council at 91 Broadway, Menands, NY 12204. To Receive an Enrollment Packet, please call us to request one. If enrolled, we will pay you directly and expect you to pay your babysitter. If you are using a daycare center or family day care we will pay directly to the provider. In both cases, we need a completed attendance sheet for the month. Your payment will be based on attendance. This program, using a State formula and your annual income, will establish a "parent share" which you will need to pay. This parent share does not include any additional costs your provider may charge you (for example for transportation or if they charge more than we can pay).

Once you have completed the Application for Child Care Assistance, Day Care Provider Information Form and secured copies of paystubs and child support orders mail or bring to:

Rensselaer County Department of Social Services
127 Bloomingrove Drive
Troy NY 12180
ATT: Daycare

Important Information About Your Day Care Case

• Make copies, do not send originals. We do not make copies.
• Make sure the hours that your child(ren) are attending daycare match the hours that you are working
• If you lose your job notify us immediately
• If you are leaving your job due to disability, pregnancy, or other reasons please let us know immediately;
• If you get paid directly by us, give the entire amount to your babysitter. We will involve the Fraud Unit if you fail to pay your babysitter.
• We randomly verify information. For example, we may call employers, babysitters, or audit self-employment. We do this to protect public funds from potential fraud.
• We have 30 days to make a decision on your case (it usually doesn't take that long)
• Every six months you are required to submit new paystubs, be aware that you will receive a recertification packet in the mail. The information is time sensitive and your case can be closed if not submitted.
• If we discover fraud, we immediately report it to the Fraud Unit and/or the District Attorney's Office.
• We pay up to market rate for your provider. If your provider charges more than market rate you are responsible to pay the difference. THIS IS IN ADDITION TO YOUR PARENT SHARE.
• If you change providers we need to have the change in writing. Please let us know who the provider is, on what date he/she will start and the child who will be attending.
• We pay for childcare on a monthly basis. Submit your bill at the end of the month. Do not send it in early. If you forget to send in a bill for a month we will not pay double the next month. If you need the funding be sure the bill is submitted monthly.