NORTH ADAMS - Northern Berkshire parents who receive state-subsidized child care will have to drive to Pittsfield from now on to renew their vouchers instead of stopping by the Resources for Child Care satellite office on Main Street.
Resources for Child Care, which is managed locally by Child Care of the Berkshires, notified parents this week that it is closing the North Adams office in response to Gov. Deval Patrick's recently announced emergency 9-C cuts.
The state is calling for a $13.3 million reduction in the $23.1 million line item that supports the distribution of some $421 million in child-care vouchers across the state.In Berkshire County, the local agency, Resources for Child Care, oversees about $6 million in subsidies - grants that pay a portion of day-care costs for families based on economic need.
Funding for the subsidized vouchers was left untouched, but the jobs of some employees who administer them will be lost, Anne Nemetz-Carlson, executive director of Child Care of the Berkshires, said Friday.
"As part of the governor's cuts, the Department of Early Education and Care cut the management budget for these vouchers by over 50 percent," Nemetz-Carlson said. "While we haven't heard anything official, the cuts are presented in the governor's budget summery. We understand that cuts need to be made, but no one else is receiving a 50 percent cut. We don't know how we'll keep our doors open - it's very problematic for an agency that saw 380 clients
The satellite office, which was reduced to operating one day a week a few years ago, was moved to a shared space within the state Office of Transitional Assistance at the beginning of the year to cut costs. Now it appears Resources for Child Care will have to cut two of its three counselors, Nemetz-Carlson said.
"We'd like to keep the office open at least once a month," she said. "We understand the problems this will cause for families. We serve 1,000 families from around the county, which is a total of 2,200 children. I don't know how we're going to handle that need if we're reduced to one full-time person. We'll be lucky if we have an additional half-time person."
In addition to ensuring that voucher recipients meet state eligibility requirements, which are determined by complex formulas based on income and household size, the agency also ensures that local day cares that accept the vouchers are paid in a timely fashion.
"We have a next-day turnaround," Nemetz-Carlson said. "We receive the money from the state and get it out to the day cares. The problem is, the state is always a month behind. We're also going to be hurting the people who care for these children."
Child Care of the Berkshires has already contacted local officials and state legislators in an attempt to soften the financial blow, she said.
"The budget hearing isn't until Nov. 15, so we're on pins and needles. Certifying families for child-care vouchers is a rigorous process that has to be done well, or it could cost the state even more money."
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