Get Latest WorkWORLD

Child Care - Income - Massachusetts

To be eligible for subsidized child care, in addition to meeting service need requirements, the family must meet one or more of the following income criteria:

·          At the time the family first enrolls in a subsidized child care slot, the family's gross monthly income must be at or below 50% of the State Median Income (SMI). The family will remain eligible for subsidized child care as long as the family’s gross monthly income is at or below 85% of the SMI.

·          At the time the family first enrolls in a subsidized child care slot, the family’s gross monthly income must be at or below 85% of the SMI, if the family has a qualifying child with a disability or special need. Such families will remain eligible for subsidized child care as long as the family’s gross monthly income is at or below 100% of the SMI. To qualify, parents must submit a completed Verification of Special Needs of the Child Form.

·          At the time the family first enrolls in a subsidized child care slot, the family’s gross monthly income must be at or below 85% of the SMI, if either parent is incapacitated. Such families will remain eligible for subsidized child care as long as the family’s gross monthly income is at or below 100% of the SMI. To qualify, parents must complete the Verification of Parental Incapacity Form.

In addition, parents whose service need is work must document income at least equal to minimum wage for hours worked to qualify for the subsidy.

Families headed by foster parents, temporary or permanent guardians or caretakers are exempt from income maximums, but must earn at least minimum wage for hours worked when the service need is work.

Income eligibility is based on the income of family members and the size of the family. Therefore, the definition of family is of critical importance. See the Child Care - Family Definition - Massachusetts topic for the definition of family as it applies to the Child Care program.

The family’s income includes wages/salary (including overtime), Social Security, alimony or child support, public assistance, and other sources of each member of the family.

NOTE: You can view a table showing the maximum income limits for each family size, as well as required sliding scale fees from within the WorkWORLD Help/Information system.

Click this link to view the child care family income limits table.

The most recent version of the table is available on the Internet (requires Adobe Acrobat) at
http://www.eec.state.ma.us/docs/FA_IE_PCP.pdf

If including overtime in family income makes the family ineligible for the subsidy and the parent reports that overtime is a rare occurrence, the parent may reapply at a later date and request that eligibility be reassessed. At the reassessment, the parent may demonstrate that overtime is a rare occurrence by presenting pay stubs for four consecutive weeks.

If a parent signs a statement denying the receipt of child support from his/her child’s other parent, the child support should not be included in the parent’s income. However, parents with a court order for child support who deny receiving the full amount must present a child support payment history from the Department of Revenue. If the parent reports a lump sum child support payment for payment in arrears, only an amount equal to the monthly amount ordered should be included in calculating the parent’s monthly income.

Alimony payments or child support payments made to persons outside the household may be deducted from the gross monthly income of the family applying for the subsidy for purposes of determining eligibility.

Income from some sources is not included when calculating a family’s gross monthly income to determine eligibility for subsidized child care. Below is a list of the types of income that are not included:

·          Per capita payments to or funds held in trust for any individual in satisfaction of a judgment of the Indian Claims Commission or the Court of Claims

·          Payments made pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to the extent such payments are exempt from taxation under Section 21(a) of the Act

·          Money received from the sale of property, such as stocks, bonds, a house, or a car (unless the person was engaged in the business of selling such property, in which case the net proceeds would be counted as income from self-employment)

·          Withdrawals from bank accounts

·          Money borrowed

·          Tax refunds

·          Gifts

·          Capital gains

·          The value of the coupon allotment under the Food Stamp Act of 1964, as amended, in excess of the amount paid for coupons

·          The value of USDA donated foods

·          The value of supplemental food assistance under the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 and the special food service program for children under the National School Lunch Act, as amended

·          Any payment received under the uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970

·          Loans and grants, such as scholarships, obtained and used under conditions that preclude their use for current living costs

·          Lump sum inheritance or lump sum insurance payments

·          Any grant or loan to an undergraduate student for education purposes made or insured under any program administered by the U.S. Commission of Education

·          Home produce utilized for household consumption

·          Any stipend received under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 - VISTA stipend

·          Subsidized adoption payments from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

·          Agent Orange Settlement Fund payments made to Vietnam Veterans or their survivors in accordance with public law 101-201, January 1, 1989

·          Rental allowance made to any welfare recipients (TAFDC); Emergency Aid to the Elderly, the Disabled and to Children (EAEDC); or funds from the Refugee Resettlement Program (RRP)

·          Military Housing Allowance

·          Employer’s Benefit Dollars, unless the employee elects not to spend the dollars on benefits

·          Travel Reimbursement

·          Income earned by children under the age of 18

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-Income Eligible -01, Department of Early Education and Care, from PDF document (requires Adobe Acrobat) at:
http://www.eec.state.ma.us/docs/IEEligibilityIncome.pdf

WorkWORLD™ Help/Information System

   Share/Save: Click the button or link at left to select your favorite bookmark service and add this page.

This is one topic from the thousands available in the WorkWORLD™ software Help/Information System.
Complete information about the software is available at: http://www.WorkWORLD.org