MISSOURI -- Missouri delegates passed a child care assistance bill on its final day of legislative session. The bill targets parents who could lose state child care funding with the slightest bump in pay.
KHQA's Kristen Aguirre spoke with one parent who hopes the bill becomes a law.
Heaven Smith has been working at her job for the past four years. A raise could be in the cards for her, but unlike many people, she hopes not.
"I'd probably be excited for a second but then you have to worry about whether you're going to make too much and not be able to get the help you need," Smith said.
Smith gets child care assistance from the state. Any hike in pay could set her above the poverty line, making her ineligible for for funding. But a bill that recently passed during the Missouri's legislative session could change that.
"What this will hopefully do is get them over that cliff and encourage families to go ahead take that bump or take a job where they can make more money," Senator Brian Munzlinger said. "This actually subsidizes their childcare so they can keep that because we know that's important part of keeping a family at work."
The bill calls for a pilot program that would prevent a sudden loss of child care if parents' income exceeds the limit. However, those parents would have to pay a monthly premium of 50 percent of the amount that exceeds the maximum poverty line.
"This would allow those families to continue to go to work, go to school or to improve their family income and they would still have child care available to them," Cynthia Johnson, HeadStart senior director said.
"It's encouraging them to go for that better job, go for that raise, do whatever they can to be more productive citizen," Senator Munzlinger said.
For Smith, being a productive citizen means getting off child care assistance all together and getting that raise. Something she needs this bill to help her do.
"If they would pay some of it, more than what they pay now I would probably be able to afford it," Smith said.
The pilot program will run for at least two years. One urban county and one rural county will participate in it, allowing law makers to get an idea of how participants will react to paying a premium and if the state will be able to save money from the program.
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