SR 31 — RESOLUTION PROPOSING APPROVAL OF A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT OFFICE OF EARLY CHILDHOOD AND THE CONNECTICUT STATE EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION (CSEA-SEIU LOCAL 2001).

Senate General Assembly SenateFile Resolution No.

31849 January Session, 2023 LCOSenate Resolution No.

837231 ReferredSenate, toJune 1, 2023 The Senate Committee on Appropriations Introducedreported by:through SEN.OSTENofthe19thDist.,Chairperson oftheCommittee on the part of the Senate, that the resolution ought to be adopted.

SEN.

LOONEY, 11 Dist.

APP Senate Favorable LCOSR31 \\PRDFS1\SCOUSERS\FORZANOF\WS\2023SR-00031-R01/ ofFile 1No. SB.docx

849 1 SR31 File No.

849 The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose.

In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional knowledge.

Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note State Impact:

Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 23 $ FY 24 $ FY 25 $ Early Childhood, Various - Cost 7,737,000 5,122,325 5,032,325 Off.

Note:

Various=Various Municipal Impact:

None Explanation The resolution proposes approval of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Office of Early Childhood (OEC) and the Connecticut State Employees Association (CSEA- SEIU Local 2001).

This agreement covers the period July 1, 2022 through June 30, and applies to family child care providers (licensed and unlicensed).

Total estimated costs associated with this agreement is $7,737,000 in FY 23;

$5,122,325 in FY 24;

$5,032,325 in FY 25;

and $11,886,325 in FY 26.

A summary of these costs is reflected in the table below:

Family Child Care Providers (Local 2001) Cost Estimate FY 23 $ FY 24 $ FY 25 $ FY 26 $ $ Annualized Retroactive Lump Sum 7,400,000 - - - - Increase for Licensed - 800,000 1,600,000 6,500,000 6,500,000 Providers Increase for Unlicensed - 3,800,000 2,900,000 4,800,000 4,800,000 Providers Resource and Referral - $5 - 205,325 205,325 205,325 205,325 Accreditation Bonus 237,000 217,000 227,000 281,000 541,000 Professional Development 50,000 50,000 50,000 50,000 50,000 Fund Increase SR31 / File No.

849 2 SR31 File No.

849 New Professional 50,000 50,000 50,000 50,000 50,000 Development Supports Total Increases 7,737,000 5,122,325 5,032,32511,886,325 12,146,325 Lump Sum for FY 23 – The agreement includes a one-time lump sum payment to all providers in the bargaining unit payable on or before September 1, 2023.

The value of the of the lump sum payment is based on 6.5% of a provider's FY 23 Care4Kids income (from base rates only).

A minimum lump sum payment of $500 is available to providers who have provided care in six or more months of FY 23, while a minimum lump sum payment of $250 is available to providers who provided care in at least one month but less than six months.

This results in a cost of $7.4 million in FY 23.

Rate Increase for Licensed Providers - The agreement establishes an 11% wage increase annually,effective July 1,2023throughJune30, 2026.

The wage increases for licensed family childcare providers is estimated to cost $800,000 in FY 24, $1.6 million in FY 25, and $6.5 million in FY 26.

Rate Increase for Unlicensed Providers – The agreement establishes a 6% wage increase annually, effective July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2026.

The agreement also continues to require the rate for unlicensed providers to be equal to one-third of the state’s minimum wage rate and to increase accordingly.

The wage increases for unlicensed providers is estimated to cost $3.8 million in FY 24, $2.9 million in FY 25, and $4.8 million in FY 26.

Resource and Referral – OEC intends to issue a request for proposal (RFP) for purposes of creating a new online resource and referral directory for licensed childcare providers.

OEC will contribute five dollars per month for each month a bargaining unit provider has worked and received Care4Kids payments.

The resource and referral payments is estimated to cost $205,325 beginning in FY 24 and for each year thereafter through FY 26.

Accreditation Bonus - Family childcare providers with a national accreditation will receive a 7.5% increase while such accreditation is maintained.

This is anticipated to result in a cost of $237,000 in FY 23, SR31 / File No.

849 3 SR31 File No.

849 $217,000 in FY 24, $227,000 in FY 25, and $281,000 in FY 26.

Professional Development Fund Increase – Funding is increased annually, from $200,000 to $250,000, to support the Professional Development Fund from FY 23 through FY 26.