Travis County moves to pilot short‑term uses of voter‑approved childcare fund, seeks advisory council by June 10

Travis County Commissioners Court on Tuesday approved a plan allowing Health and Human Services (HHS) to begin short‑term investments from the voter‑approved childcare and out‑of‑school‑time (CCOST) fund while HHS completes formal solicitations and forms a community advisory council.

The court’s vote authorizes HHS to expand childcare and after‑school slots through contract modifications with current providers, negotiate interlocal agreements (ILAs) with school districts that serve high percentages of economically disadvantaged students, and pursue pilot partnerships with the city of Austin and Workforce Solutions to close “cost‑of‑quality” gaps providers report.

The action follows months of HHS community outreach and a two‑hour public comment period during which providers, community advocates and business leaders urged quick use of the funds, stressed the county’s pressing need for infant/toddler (0–3) slots, and warned that funding school‑district pre‑K expansion could destabilize existing family‑ and community‑based providers if not coordinated.

Pilar Sanchez, County Executive for Health and Human Services, briefed the court on the program goals and transition plan, saying the county intends both to pilot near‑term services and to run competitive procurements for long‑term operations. “We plan to bring a proposal to Commissioners Court in early summer and begin the application process following that approval,” she said.

HHS described four voter‑approved strategies that will guide investments: expand slots for childcare and out‑of‑school time; increase access to nontraditional hours (early mornings, evenings, weekends); strengthen provider quality and workforce pathways; and create employer‑matching partnerships to help employees pay for care. Short‑term investments would not exhaust first‑year funds, HHS said; staff estimated roughly $30 million could be used now while reserving the remainder to sustain multi‑year work.

Speakers from a broad cross section of stakeholders supported moving quickly but pressed the court for conditions. Laura Olsen of Go Austin Vamos Austin urged the court to “postpone and amend the short‑term investments … before taking any action” unless the plan clearly prioritizes 0–3 care and funds family‑based providers. Mainspring Schools and Open Door Preschools told the court they have hundreds of children on wait lists and said subsidy rates fall short of the actual cost of quality care.

Several speakers and commissioners asked HHS to accelerate formation of a Community Advisory Council and to return to court on June 10 with a recommended council structure and charge; the court requested that timeline. Commissioners also directed staff to continue negotiating with Workforce Solutions and to explore ILAs with the city of Austin as a possible faster route to expand family‑based capacity.

HHS said two after‑school contractors — African American Youth Harvest Foundation and Creative Action — are prepared to expand summer programming quickly if purchasing constraints can be cleared. HHS and Purchasing staff warned that modifying county contracts has legal and procurement limits (the typical administrative threshold cited was $500,000 for certain modifications) and that some provider expansions will require new or amended agreements and short ramp‑up time for eligibility and payroll systems.

The court’s motion, moved by Commissioner Trevillian and seconded by Commissioner Shea, also asked HHS to present a draft community advisory council plan to court by June 10 and to return with final contract terms for any short‑term investments. Court members said they would monitor procurement, audit and contract timelines closely.

HHS and community groups emphasized that the fund was written to supplement — not supplant — existing state and local subsidy dollars, and urged measures to avoid destabilizing the community network of home‑based and nonprofit providers who serve the county’s most vulnerable infants and toddlers.

Next steps: HHS will pursue limited contract modifications and ILAs for short‑term pilots, continue Workforce Solutions negotiations, finalize a recommended advisory council structure for June 10, and return procurement request(s) and proposed contracts to Commissioners Court for approval before any funds are disbursed.