New Jersey is reopening applications for child care assistance program in December

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The New Jersey Department of Human Services announced recently that it will reopen the Child Care Assistance Program, for a limited number of slots, with the goal of allowing new children into the program in January.

The program provides financial assistance for families to pay for child care. According to the First Five Years Fund, home-based child care in New Jersey could cost, on average, $12,502 a year or $1,042 a month. For center-based child care, it is $20,213 a year, or $1,684.

In August, the agency stopped accepting new applications because of limited funding. Children, who were already in the program, continued to receive assistance.

A webpage with updates on the program allows people to sign up to receive an alert when the applications open.

No additional money allocated to the program

Department spokesman Tom Hester said because of normal attrition, they now have open slots available. Gov. Phil Murphy allocated $79.5 million for the program in this year’s budget, which includes a $46 million increase. But a funding gap remains, in part, due to increased enrollment, according to a department press release.

State Sens. Angela McKnight and Britnee Timberlake and Asw. Shanique Speight said they would draft legislation to increase funding for the program.

Application window to open in December

Families who fall into a priority group will be among the first eligible to submit applications. Priority groups, according to state law, include families with children experiencing homelessness, children with special needs and children from households with very low income.

The program is funded to support 75,000 children. But Hester said the department is estimating that an additional 3,000–5,000 children can be served for the rest of the fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2026.

Eligibility criteria

To qualify for the program, New Jersey residents must meet income requirements and not have assets exceeding $1 million. The state has a web calculator to help a parent or guardian figure out income eligibility. Adults must also be working full-time, attending school full-time, in job training or have a full-time equivalent combination of these activities.

Children needing assistance must be up to 13 years old, or younger than 19 if they are mentally or physically incapable of self-care or are under protective supervision. They also must be U.S. citizens or qualified noncitizens and reside with the parent or legal guardian.