State Child Care Assistance Policies 2010: Colorado

•    Income eligibility limit: In 2010, counties in Colorado could set their income limit for a family of three to qualify for child care assistance between $23,803 a year (130 percent of poverty, 37 percent of state median income) and $54,108 a year (296 percent of poverty, 85 percent of state median income).¹

•    Waiting list: Colorado had 1,455 children on the waiting list for child care assistance as of February 2010.²  

•    Parent copayments: In 2010, a family of three with an income at 100 percent of poverty ($18,310 a year) receiving child care assistance paid $253 per month, or 17 percent of its income in copayments. A family of three with an income at 150 percent of poverty ($27,465 a year) receiving child care assistance paid $155 per month, or 7 percent of its income in copayments.

•    Reimbursement rates: In 2010, Colorado’s reimbursement rates for child care providers serving families receiving child care assistance were below the federally recommended level—the 75th percentile of current market rates, which is the level designed to give families access to 75 percent of the providers in their community.³ 
o    The monthly reimbursement rate for center care for a four-year-old in Denver was $375, or 39 percent, below the 75th percentile of current market rates for this type of care.
o    The monthly reimbursement rate for center care for a one-year-old in Denver was $376, or 34 percent, below the 75th percentile of current market rates for this type of care.

•    Tiered reimbursement rates: In 2010, some counties in Colorado paid higher reimbursement rates for higher-quality care.⁴
o    The reimbursement rate for center care for a four-year-old in Denver at the highest quality tier was 34 percent higher than the rate at the lowest quality tier.
o    The reimbursement rate for center care for a four-year-old in Denver at the highest quality tier was still below the 75th percentile of current market rates.

•    Eligibility for parents searching for a job: In 2010, Colorado allowed parents to qualify for or continue receiving child care assistance for up to 180 days while searching for a job.⁵  

¹Counties set their income limits within state guidelines. Also note that counties may allow families already receiving assistance to continue doing so after their income exceeds the country’s initial income eligibility limit for up to six months, if their income remains below 85 percent of the state median income ($54,108 in 2010).
²Waiting lists are kept at the county level, rather than at the state level. The waiting list total for 2010 is the total of reported county waiting lists.
³Each county determines its own reimbursement rates.
⁴Each county determines whether to offer higher rates for higher-quality care.
⁵The amount of time parents could receive child care assistance while searching for a job was extended from 30 days to 180 days (in a 12-month period) as of April 2009 using American Recovery and Reinvestment Acts (ARRA) funds. The state will revert to the previous policy when ARRA expires.

Source: Karen Schulman and Helen Blank, State Child Care Assistance Policies 2010: New Federal Funds Help States Weather the Storm (Washington, DC: National Women’s Law Center, 2010). These data reflect policies as of February 2010, unless otherwise indicated.