Summary:

SB 294 intends to expand eligibility for Delaware’s child care assistance program—Delaware Purchase of Care (POC)—to include full-time post-secondary students pursuing associate or bachelor’s degrees, while also clarifying that certain forms of financial aid are excluded from income calculations for eligibility purposes.

Analysis:

What is the Purchase of Care (POC) Program?

The Purchase of Care program is the primary system through which Delaware provides subsidies for childcare. The program is meant for low- to moderate-income families, and the program helps in covering the high costs of childcare while parents are working. Eligibility is primarily based upon income (200% of the Federal Poverty Line), and retaining or gaining employment that childcare hinders, including: ‘training leading to employment’.

This legislation seeks to expand its definition of ‘training leading to employment’ by including full-time post-secondary education. The bill places degree-seeking students within the same category as individuals actively working or in workforce training programs. SB 294 treats education as a form of workforce participation rather than a separate activity. This reflects a recent trend amongst the Delaware legislature that has sought to make eligibility to POC more accessible.

The Act, as mentioned previously, also excludes grants, scholarships, and certain student loans from income calculations. This is an important technical adjustment, as counting financial aid as income can create eligibility conflicts, where receiving support for education reduces access to other benefits. By removing these from consideration, the bill standardizes how educational funding is treated within the program.

Additionally, this legislation is similar in structure to HB 387, which expands POC eligibility through gradual increases in income thresholds. While HB 387 adjusts who qualifies based on earnings, SB 294 adjusts eligibility based on activity. Both approaches expand access within the same framework, rather than restructuring the program itself.

While this bill expands access, it does so within defined limits, particularly by restricting eligibility to only full-time students. Therefore, SB 294 represents a continuation of incremental changes to POC, focusing on eligibility adjustments rather than broader program reform.