AN ACT to increase funding to dolly parton's imagination library and TO appropriate funds to improve child care access.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

PART I. FUNDS FOR DOLLY PARTON'S IMAGINATION LIBRARY

SECTION 1.1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Child Development and Early Education, the sum of one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) in recurring funds for each year of the 2023‑2025 fiscal biennium to be allocated to the North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc., for Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, an early literacy program that mails age‑appropriate books to registered children on a monthly basis.

PART II. INCREASE CAPACITY, ACCESS, AND AFFORDABILITY FOR FAMILIES

SECTION 2.1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Child Development and Early Education (Division), the sum of two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) in recurring funds for the 2023‑2024 fiscal year for a child care infrastructure study to be performed by a North Carolina nonprofit foundation having expertise with employers in different industries from across the State. The nonprofit foundation selected to conduct the study shall analyze innovative State‑based options that engage employers in solutions that meet the child care infrastructure, capital, and workforce needs with a focus on promoting child care accessibility and affordability. The Division shall submit a report on the study to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services by December 1, 2024.

SECTION 2.2.  Effective October 1, 2023, Section 9C.4(a) of S.L. 2021‑180 reads as rewritten:

SECTION 9C.4.(a)  The maximum gross annual income for initial eligibility, adjusted annually, for subsidized child care services shall be determined based on a percentage of the federal poverty level as follows:

AGE                                                            INCOME PERCENTAGE LEVEL

0 – 5                                                                                       200%

6 – 12                                                                                     133%

The eligibility for any child with special needs, including a child who is 13 years of age or older, shall be seventy‑five percent (75%) of the State Median Income. The child of an individual employed by or with an employment offer and designated start date from a licensed child care facility in this State is deemed eligible for the subsidized child care program and is not subject to the income eligibility requirements of this subsection.

PART III. EFFECTIVE DATE

SECTION 3.1.  Except as otherwise provided, this act becomes effective July 1, 2023.