Consider and take appropriate action to approve modification to Interlocal Agreement No. 4600000931 with Worksource – Greater Austin Area Workforce Board DBA Workforce Solutions—Capital Area Workforce Board for the provision of Early Childhood Care Services and Wage Stipends. (Judge Brown).

Staff Report & Agenda Item Details

HHS staff is recommending approval of modification to Interlocal Agreement with Workforce Solutions contract No.4600000931 to replace the Continuity of Child Care Program work statement, the Jeanette Watson Wage Stipend Program work statement, and program budget. The contract provides continuity of child care services for families with low incomes in Austin/Travis County when access to child care might otherwise be terminated due to federal child care development funding rules. The Contract also provides financial incentives to ensure early childhood teacher retention and reward educators for pursuing higher education in early childhood development through the Wage Stipend Program.<br data-pasted="true"><br>This modification updates the Continuity of Care work statement to add a priority group for families with children receiving services through the Department of Family Protective Services. It also updates the Jeanette Watson Wage Stipend work statement to prioritize credentialed educators and makes minor updates to performance measures to better reflect service delivery. Finally, the modification adjusts performance goals due to FY 26 reduction in City of Austin funding for these programs.<br><br>The contract was approved by the Court on February 11, 2025. The Travis County Health and Human Service (HHS) department has directly managed the County’s social services investments since 2007 providing fiscal and programmatic oversight. HHS conducted procurement for the Early Childhood Issue Area in 2024 for new FY 2025 contracts. As part of this process, HHS negotiated a new Interlocal Agreement (ILA) with Workforce Solutions for continuity of child care services and wage stipends for early childhood educators. As the local Workforce Board, Workforce Solutions is the designated agency in Travis County to receive federal child care subsidy funds through the Texas Workforce Commission. Travis County’s investment through Workforce Solutions leverages the existing child care subsidy infrastructure to fill gaps in the federal subsidy system. The investment also supports retention of child care educators to build the quality and capacity of the child care system.<br><br>