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MSDE to prioritize families experiencing homelessness on childcare scholarship wait list; co‑pay changes due in August
Summary
Following new legislation, MSDE is exempting families experiencing homelessness from the childcare scholarship wait list and will implement a statutory prioritization order as funds become available; agency plans to propose a sliding co‑pay scale to expand reach.
MSDE briefed the State Board on changes to the Child Care Scholarship (CCS) program after the General Assembly enacted House Bill 849 (and related legislation) this spring.
Agency leads said the law creates an exemption allowing families experiencing homelessness to bypass the CCS wait list — subject to verification — and it codifies a prioritization order for awarding new scholarships as slots or funding become available. "Earlier this month, all families on the wait list who have identified their housing situation as being homeless were issued notification informing of this new eligibility," said Shavon Williams, director of the CCS program. "Those families were given 30 days" to supply documentation for verification.
MSDE explained the prioritization sequence required by statute: 1) families with the greatest financial need (lowest annual household income), 2) applicants who work at least 20 hours a week in a childcare or eligible public pre‑K program that accepts CCS, 3) children under age 3, and 4) families on the wait list longest. The department said it will update the application system to collect necessary indicators (including an option for childcare workers) and will phase awards as funding and slots permit.
MSDE also described a forthcoming sliding co‑pay schedule (statute caps payments and exempts families below the federal poverty line) and said staff will return in August with co‑pay proposals and additional operational details. The department reported about 8,000 children were on the CCS wait list in June 2026 and noted the Legislature added $20 million to the program for this fiscal cycle; MSDE cautioned that rate increases and program costs limit how many additional slots that appropriation will support.
