Childcare services: workday.

Assembly Member Aguiar-Curry's childcare services legislation expands access to state-subsidized childcare by redefining eligibility criteria to include parents during job searches, pregnancy-related leaves, and paid family leave periods. The bill modifies the Welfare and Institutions Code to broaden the definition of "workday" and introduces "parental incapacity" as grounds for childcare assistance.

Under the amended provisions, parents can qualify for childcare support through a simplified attestation process rather than submitting medical documentation when on leave. The legislation maintains existing priority systems that place neglected or abused children first, followed by income-eligible families, while adding pregnancy and family leave as qualifying circumstances for program eligibility.

The measure directs the State Department of Social Services to implement these changes through management bulletins until formal regulations are adopted, with specific deadlines for regulatory development. Local agencies and childcare providers must incorporate the expanded eligibility criteria without state reimbursement, as the bill's provisions relate to modifications of existing programs rather than creating new mandated services.