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Child Care - Family Definition - Massachusetts

For purposes of determining eligibility for subsidized child care, a family is defined as one of the following:

·          A parent and his/her dependent child(ren) and any dependent grandparents who reside in the same household; or

·          A teen parent and his or her children who reside in the same household.

A "parent" is a biological or adoptive parent or stepparent, or another person who lives with, supervises and cares for a child or children whose parents do not live in the home (a caretaker). A "dependent child" is a person under the age of 18, or a person under the age of 24 if he or she is a full time student. A dependent grandparent is a grandparent of the child receiving care who resides in the household with the child and is financially dependent on the child’s parents.

When a household includes two parents, both parents must be included in the family for purposes of determining income, service need and family size.

If a teen parent and her child(ren) reside in the same household as the teen’s parents and are dependent on the teen’s parents for support, they may be included in the family size of the teen’s parent, provided that the teen is a full-time student, and provided that the teen is not receiving or applying for a subsidy for her own child(ren).

In order to be eligible for child care subsidy, caretakers must submit evidence that they have applied for temporary or permanent legal custody through the courts. However, if a caretaker submits evidence that the parent is temporarily unavailable (due to brief military service, medical or mental health treatment or incarceration, for example), legal guardianship need not be established.

The applicant parent must sign a statement verifying the names and relationship of all members of the family. If a provider has evidence (such as a police report, postal address verification or the like) of the presence of a spouse or another parent in the household whom the applicant has failed to report, the provider may require the applicant parent to submit evidence that the spouse or other parent is not a household member. If the applicant fails to submit evidence that the spouse or other parent is not a household member, the provider must consider the income and service need of the spouse or other parent when determining eligibility.

See also

Child Care - Overview - Massachusetts

Child Care - Program Types - Massachusetts

Child Care - Frequently Asked Questions - Massachusetts

Child Care - Acronyms, Abbreviations, and Definitions - Massachusetts

Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (CCR&R) - Massachusetts

Source

P-EEC-Subsidy 00-06, Department of Early Education and Care, from PDF document (requires Adobe Acrobat) at:
http://www.eec.state.ma.us/docs/IEDefinitionFamily.pdf

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