For the department of early education and care, in consultation with the executive office of economic development, to establish a competitive matching grant pilot program to increase access to high quality and affordable child care by incentivizing employer investments; provided, that said program shall be open to applications from a Massachusetts employer, a group of Massachusetts employers or an early education and care provider partnering with a Massachusetts employer or group of Massachusetts employers; provided further, that said program shall fund investments in infrastructure, startup, employment, and other related costs to establish new early education and care slots or increase the number of children that can be served by at least one provider; provided further, that an applicant shall: (i) commit to investing not less than 50 per cent of the expected cost of infrastructure, startup, employment, or other costs related to creating new early education and care slots; (ii) certify that early educators who serve children in slots funded by this program are paid pursuant to salary and compensation guidelines established by the department; and (iii) ensure that early education and care providers funded through this program enroll or commit to enrolling children receiving child care financial assistance; provided further, that the department shall seek to maximize equity when reviewing and selecting grant applicants, including prioritizing applications that: (1) support higher numbers of children from low-income families; (2) present a plan for maintaining affordable tuition prices for families; (3) are from applicants located in rural areas or in areas with a short of early education and care slots; (4) support historically underserved populations, infants, toddlers, families with nontraditional work hours, and families with children with high needs; (5) promote equity in other ways as deemed appropriate by the department; and (6) support high-demand and low wage industries; provided further, that an early education and care provider shall not be eligible to participate in the pilot program unless the provider is a non-profit organization, an organization in which a non-profit organization has a controlling financial or managerial interest or a licensed family home-based early education and care provider; provided further, that, not later than December 2, 2024, the department of early education and care shall file a report on the pilot program with the clerks of the senate and house of representatives, the senate and house committees on ways and means, and the joint committee on education; and provided further, the report shall include, but not be limited to: (a) number of program participants; (b) number of early education and care slots support by this line item; (c) percentage of slots filled by children receiving child care financial assistance; and (d) guidelines for a potential permanent program
