I need to return to work but I have two babies. My mother in law has always watched them for us but we have moved and I now need to put them in daycare. I know daycare can be pretty expensive and I have heard that you can get financial assistance for it but I don't know where to look. Does anyone know of any websites or anything I can get information about it from? Thank you so much!
here'a website that has the info and income guidelines for childcare assistance. This site is for Pinellas county, but I think you may need to find something similar for Hillsborough? Anyway, the income guidelines are for the entire State of Florida. Good luck!
http://childcarepinellas.org/paying.htm
It all depends on what you make. All you can do is contact the appropriate government agency. The names vary from state to state.
Here is a list of licensed child care facilities in Florida.
http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/programs/childcare/
Find your local Florida Dept of Children and Families office - call and ask if Florida has "child care assistance". It's income based.
In my area we have something called Child Care Council that offers financial assistance for child care. It is income-based. I would google something like that and see what comes up.
If your income is low enough to get food stamps the state may also provide child care assistance. Call or look on the Internet for information.
Some childcare facilities offers discounts for multiple children in their facility at the same time as well as follow the other suggestions. Honestly you don't know what you are looking at until you actually look into the cost of the facilities near you.
Contact Social Services. You will need your household income information (tax return) and birth certificates for everyone living there.
One thing you may want to look into is a FSA/HSA type account through your job. This account withholds a certain portion of your pay from your checks with no taxation of that income earned. When you pay your day care, you take the receipts and submit them to the company that holds the withheld money. When you set up the account, you determine how much money will be set aside for the year. It is very economical and while not government assistance, you are saving money because that income is not taxed.
Contact your Dept of Human Resources, they Are usually with the Social Services and Clerk office. The program is called CCAP here in Colorado and they pay the child care provider a portion of the cost directly and then you pay the remainder. You will need to find a childcare provider that the program accepts as well.
Good luck
Pennsylvania has a program called Title 20. I am unsure about Florida. Call your local welfare office and ask them. They can help you. The income limit is pretty low in PA. Hopefully you will have some luck :)
