(a) The department shall establish a CareShare Tennessee pilot program within the department to provide employer-supported child care assistance through shared contributions by participating employers, participating employees, and the state.
(b) As used in this section:(1) “Contribution” means a payment made by an employer or employee, whether directly or through a third-party administrator, to subsidize eligible child care costs;(2) “Eligible child care costs” means the costs incurred for child care services provided by an eligible child care provider;(3) “Employee” means an individual employed in this state by a participating employer;(4) “Employer” means a for-profit or nonprofit entity, including, but not limited to, a local government or local education agency, that employs one (1) or more employees in this state;(5) “Participating employer” means an employer approved by the department or a third-party administrator to participate in the program;(6) “Pilot program” means the CareShare Tennessee pilot program created in this section; and(7) “State match” means the funds paid from the promising futures fund created in § 71-1-304 to an eligible child care provider to match employer and employee contributions received through the pilot program.
(1) “Contribution” means a payment made by an employer or employee, whether directly or through a third-party administrator, to subsidize eligible child care costs;
(2) “Eligible child care costs” means the costs incurred for child care services provided by an eligible child care provider;
(3) “Employee” means an individual employed in this state by a participating employer;
(4) “Employer” means a for-profit or nonprofit entity, including, but not limited to, a local government or local education agency, that employs one (1) or more employees in this state;
(5) “Participating employer” means an employer approved by the department or a third-party administrator to participate in the program;
(6) “Pilot program” means the CareShare Tennessee pilot program created in this section; and
(7) “State match” means the funds paid from the promising futures fund created in § 71-1-304 to an eligible child care provider to match employer and employee contributions received through the pilot program.
(c) (1) The state match for the pilot program must be used to supplement employer and employee contributions toward eligible child care costs.(2) Subject to available funds, the state match must be determined using a declining match formula based on household income as follows:(A) The state match may equal up to one hundred percent (100%) of the employer contribution for participating employees with household incomes at or below one hundred percent (100%) of the state median income;(B) The state match must decrease by ten percent (10%) for each twenty percent (20%) increase in household income over one hundred percent (100%) of the state median household income up to one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the state median household income; and(C) The state match is fifty percent (50%) if the employee's household income exceeds one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the state median household income.
(1) The state match for the pilot program must be used to supplement employer and employee contributions toward eligible child care costs.
(2) Subject to available funds, the state match must be determined using a declining match formula based on household income as follows:(A) The state match may equal up to one hundred percent (100%) of the employer contribution for participating employees with household incomes at or below one hundred percent (100%) of the state median income;(B) The state match must decrease by ten percent (10%) for each twenty percent (20%) increase in household income over one hundred percent (100%) of the state median household income up to one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the state median household income; and(C) The state match is fifty percent (50%) if the employee's household income exceeds one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the state median household income.
(A) The state match may equal up to one hundred percent (100%) of the employer contribution for participating employees with household incomes at or below one hundred percent (100%) of the state median income;
(B) The state match must decrease by ten percent (10%) for each twenty percent (20%) increase in household income over one hundred percent (100%) of the state median household income up to one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the state median household income; and
(C) The state match is fifty percent (50%) if the employee's household income exceeds one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the state median household income.
(d) (1) The department shall contract with one (1) third-party administrator to administer the pilot program. The contract must be performance-based and include measurable targets and key performance indicators.(2) The third-party administrator is responsible for:(A) Developing and managing standardized participation agreements among employers, employees, and child care providers;(B) Verifying eligibility of employers, employees, and child care providers for purposes of the pilot program;(C) Collecting and disbursing employer and employee contributions and issuing state match payments to child care providers;(D) Collecting, maintaining, and reporting data necessary to measure performance against the key performance indicators established in the contract and documenting all pilot program activity;(E) Ensuring that state match payments are made only when sufficient funds are available and that program obligations do not exceed the balance of the promising futures fund created in § 71-1-304; and(F) Maintaining waitlists when sufficient funding is unavailable.(3) The department shall submit the report required in § 71-1-309 for purposes of evaluating the pilot program. The following are the minimum key performance indicators that must be used to evaluate the pilot program:(A) The number of participating employers, disaggregated by size, sector, and geographic region;(B) The number of participating employees receiving child care assistance;(C) The total amount of employer, employee, and state contributions made through the pilot program;(D) The number and characteristics of participating child care providers;(E) Utilization rates of approved child care assistance by participating employees; and(F) Administrative timeliness and accuracy, including contract processing times and payment disbursement timelines.
(1) The department shall contract with one (1) third-party administrator to administer the pilot program. The contract must be performance-based and include measurable targets and key performance indicators.
(2) The third-party administrator is responsible for:(A) Developing and managing standardized participation agreements among employers, employees, and child care providers;(B) Verifying eligibility of employers, employees, and child care providers for purposes of the pilot program;(C) Collecting and disbursing employer and employee contributions and issuing state match payments to child care providers;(D) Collecting, maintaining, and reporting data necessary to measure performance against the key performance indicators established in the contract and documenting all pilot program activity;(E) Ensuring that state match payments are made only when sufficient funds are available and that program obligations do not exceed the balance of the promising futures fund created in § 71-1-304; and(F) Maintaining waitlists when sufficient funding is unavailable.
(A) Developing and managing standardized participation agreements among employers, employees, and child care providers;
(B) Verifying eligibility of employers, employees, and child care providers for purposes of the pilot program;
(C) Collecting and disbursing employer and employee contributions and issuing state match payments to child care providers;
(D) Collecting, maintaining, and reporting data necessary to measure performance against the key performance indicators established in the contract and documenting all pilot program activity;
(E) Ensuring that state match payments are made only when sufficient funds are available and that program obligations do not exceed the balance of the promising futures fund created in § 71-1-304; and
(F) Maintaining waitlists when sufficient funding is unavailable.
(3) The department shall submit the report required in § 71-1-309 for purposes of evaluating the pilot program. The following are the minimum key performance indicators that must be used to evaluate the pilot program:(A) The number of participating employers, disaggregated by size, sector, and geographic region;(B) The number of participating employees receiving child care assistance;(C) The total amount of employer, employee, and state contributions made through the pilot program;(D) The number and characteristics of participating child care providers;(E) Utilization rates of approved child care assistance by participating employees; and(F) Administrative timeliness and accuracy, including contract processing times and payment disbursement timelines.
(A) The number of participating employers, disaggregated by size, sector, and geographic region;
(B) The number of participating employees receiving child care assistance;
(C) The total amount of employer, employee, and state contributions made through the pilot program;
(D) The number and characteristics of participating child care providers;
(E) Utilization rates of approved child care assistance by participating employees; and
(F) Administrative timeliness and accuracy, including contract processing times and payment disbursement timelines.
(e) All reports submitted for purposes of the pilot program must be independently verified by the office of research and education accountability in the office of the comptroller of the treasury or by an independent entity selected by the comptroller.
(f) Participation in the pilot program is voluntary for employers, employees, and child care providers.
(g) At the end of each three-year period for which the pilot program operates, the department may, subject to available funding, continue or expand the pilot program if the pilot program's continuation or expansion is approved by the governor.
(h) The department shall complete procurement and selection of the third-party administrator for the pilot program by November 1, 2026, and, subject to available funding, begin operating the pilot program by January 1, 2027.