Child Care Assistance Program
Subsidies can help pay child care providers (formerly "day care providers") for the time that parents/caretakers are at work or engaged in other qualifying activity, plus reasonable travel time each way.
Eligibility
Note: If you are currently receiving Temporary Assistance, please check with your worker to find out if you are eligible to have your child care expenses paid from your existing case!
Child care subsidies are available to working families who earn up to 300% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) for their household size.
New Eligibility Questionnaire!
In 10 minutes or less, answer a short series of questions to see if you may be able to qualify for a child care subsidy at low or no cost to you. Learn more about this new feature provided by NYS OCFS.
View more information about calculating your Gross Monthly Income.
Family Share
Most families who are eligible for a child care subsidy are responsible to pay a small portion of their child care costs directly to their provider. Weekly family shares are calculated by taking the portion of the household’s annual gross income that is above the Federal Poverty Level, multiplying it by 1% and dividing it by 52 weeks.
Some households’ circumstances exempt them from paying any family share at all. Some examples are: families that are homeless, have child protective/preventive cases, or have only temporary custody/guardianship of a child.
Income Guidelines
This chart shows the income standards that will apply as of June 1st of 2025 and are valid through May 31st of 2026:
| Family Size |
State Median Income
(SMI) for New York |
85% SMI for
New York |
| 1 |
$69,476.68 |
$59,055.18 |
| 2 |
$90,854.12 |
$77,226.00 |
| 3 |
$112,231.56 |
$95,396.83 |
| 4 |
$133,609.00 |
$113,567.65 |
| 5 |
$154,986.44 |
$131,738.47 |
| 6 |
$176,363.88 |
$149,909.30 |
| 7 |
$180,372.15 |
$153,316.33 |
| 8 |
$184,380.42 |
$156,723.36 |
| 9 |
$188,388.69 |
$160,130.39 |
| 10 |
$192,396.96 |
$163,537.42 |
| 11 |
$196,405.23 |
$166,944.45 |
| 12 |
$200,413.50 |
$170,351.48 |
| 13 |
$204,421.77 |
$173,758.50 |
| 14 |
$208,430.04 |
$177,165.53 |
| 15 |
$212,438.31 |
$180,572.56 |
| 16 |
$216,446.58 |
$183,979.59 |
| 17 |
$220,454.85 |
$187,386.62 |
| 18 |
$224,463.12 |
$190,793.65 |
| 19 |
$228,471.39 |
$194,200.68 |
| 20 |
$232,479.66 |
$197,607.71 |
The following are the SIS and 300% of the SIS to be used when prioritizing very low income cases when the district projects that allocated NYSCCBG funds will be insufficient to open all eligible non-guaranteed cases, from June 1, 2025, through May 31, 2026.
| Family Size |
New York State
Income Standard (SIS) |
300% SIS |
| 1 |
$15,650.00 |
$46,950.00 |
| 2 |
$21,150.00 |
$63,450.00 |
| 3 |
$26,650.00 |
$79,950.00 |
| 4 |
$32,150.00 |
$96,450.00 |
| 5 |
$37,650.00 |
$112,950.00 |
| 6 |
$43,150.00 |
$129,450.00 |
| 7 |
$48,650.00 |
$145,950.00 |
| 8 |
$54,150.00 |
$162,450.00 |
| 9 |
$59,650.00 |
$178,950.00 |
| 10 |
$65,150.00 |
$195,450.00 |
| 11 |
$70,650.00 |
$211,950.00 |
| 12 |
$76,150.00 |
$228,450.00 |
| 13 |
$81,650.00 |
$244,950.00 |
| 14 |
$87,150.00 |
$261,450.00 |
| 15 |
$92,650.00 |
$277,950.00 |
| 16 |
$98,150.00 |
$294,450.00 |
| 17 |
$103,650.00 |
$310,950.00 |
| 18 |
$109,150.00 |
$327,450.00 |
| 19 |
$114,650.00 |
$343,950.00 |
| 20 |
$120,150.00 |
$360,450.00 |
Each Additional
Person |
$5,500 |
$16,500 |
Subsidies may also be available to families that are:
- Participating in a qualifying educational program
- Homeless
- Victims of domestic violence
- Parent(s) is(are) participating in a qualified substance abuse treatment program
- Foster parents who work
Families in other circumstances may also qualify for a child care subsidy. Contact us by phone at (607) 274-5612 or email to find out how we can help! (If you have not heard back from us within 24 hours, please call at (607) 274-5612 for assistance.)
How to Apply
There are four ways to obtain an application to receive a child care subsidy.
- Apply now with our new online application
- Download the State application in the form of a PDF file (unfortunately not 'fillable'; it will need to be printed out.)
- Call us at 607-274-5612 to request that a hardcopy application to be mailed to you.
- Pick up an application in person at the Reception window of the county's Human Services Building in downtown Ithaca (the street address is 320 W. Martin Luther King, Jr./State Street; but our public parking lot is on Seneca Street between Albany and Plain.)
Instructions for completing the application can be downloaded as a Word document from NYS Office of Children and Family Services.
You can submit completed applications and required documentation in three ways:
- Drop off at the county's Human Services Building.
- Email: (If you have not heard back from us within 24 hours, please call at (607) 274-5612 for assistance.)
- Mail to:
Child Care Assistance Program
Tompkins County DSS
320 West MLK Jr./State Street
Ithaca, NY 14850
Additional Information
For help finding a child care provider, please contact the Child Development Council at (607) 273-0259 or visit the Find Child Care page of their website.
If you're interested in becoming a child care provider, the Child Development Council can help. Call (607) 273-0259 or visit the Providers page of their website.
For additional information on subsidized child care, please visit the NYS Office of Children and Family Services' website.
Information about the rights of applicants/recipients of this and other public assistance programs which our department administers locally can be found online.