Growing Family Child Care Opportunities Program - Funding
HB 742 amends Maryland’s Education Article provisions governing the Growing Family Child Care Opportunities Program. The bill keeps the existing program structure in place, including the Department of Education’s partnership with the Maryland Child Care Resource Network and the grant-based model used to support local programs that help establish and sustain family child care providers. It also preserves the current eligibility framework under which counties, or multiple counties, work with a child care resource center through a memorandum of understanding and jointly apply for and administer local grants.
The main substantive change is to the program’s funding schedule. HB 742 requires the Governor to include a $450,000 appropriation in the annual budget bill for the Program for fiscal years 2023, 2024, 2026, and then again for fiscal years 2028 through 2030. The bill also allows federal funds to be used to satisfy that appropriation requirement if permitted by federal law. The act takes effect July 1, 2026, and is aimed at ensuring continued state support for family child care expansion and start-up assistance, including materials, curriculum, and renovations.
HB 742 amends Section 9.5-114 of the Education Article by revising the mandatory budget appropriation language for the Growing Family Child Care Opportunities Program. It does not change the definition of family child care, the grant structure, or the county/resource-center partnership model, but it does extend and specify future funding obligations in the state budget process. The bill affects the Department of Education, county governments, child care resource centers, and family child care providers by securing a recurring funding stream for local grant programs.
The available record suggests broadly supportive sentiment, as the bill was enacted and approved by the Governor as Chapter 699. Because there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes included, there is no evidence of formal opposition in the provided materials. The bill’s purpose is framed as continued support for child care capacity and provider development, which typically aligns with workforce and early childhood care priorities.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided bill history or transcripts. The only potentially debatable issue apparent from the text is the requirement that the Governor include a set appropriation in future budget bills, which can raise questions about fiscal flexibility and the use of federal funds to meet the obligation. Otherwise, the bill appears to be a funding extension and continuation measure rather than a major policy change.