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ERDC Fall Waitlist Refresh

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Why the waitlist?

Historically, the waitlist was in place for no more than 8 months per year. Oregon’s waitlist was designed to be in place short term and relied on families losing eligibility faster than new families could be added.

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What does this mean?

Changes were made to ERDC to make it easier for:

Students to access child care,
Providers and parents to understand the benefits, and
TANF families to access care.
Families to maintain benefits

January 2023 ERDC was expanded to allow:

for students to access ERDC without employment required, we also expanded,
families were allowed to use hours for family well-being activities and
child care hours changed to a part-time or full-time authorization.

These changes made it easier for both parents and providers to understand what benefits families had.

July 2023 ERDC was expanded to serve TANF families and the TANF JOBS program was rolled into ERDC

In July 2023 less than 400 families were receiving TANF JOBS child care statewide
Now over 4,000 TANF families are eligible for child care
ERDC is new to serving TANF families and we are still learning how best to serve them.

The waitlist was implemented because program changes worked better for families. Starting in July 2023 4,607 cases were added in just 5 months.

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Who is on the waitlist?

Families on the waitlist fall into one of two categories

Those who apply for ERDC and do not meet a waitlist bypass
Those who meet a bypass, but do not meet other eligibility requirements

The ERDC waitlist is not a representation of ERDC eligible families who didn't meet a bypass. The waitlist tells us how many families have asked for help covering their child care costs.

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What we know

Though the caseload has not dropped, the waitlist has held the caseload steady since it was implemented in November 2023.

Due to program funding DELC determined the waitlist will be in place long term.

Oregon has never managed a long-term waitlist before.

DELC policy staff met with other state child care programs and Oregon housing authorities to find out more about how to manage a long-term waitlist.

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What we learned

Housing programs limit when families can apply

Multnomah County opened their waitlist to applicants for 5 days in 2023
They received 19,000 applications and kept 2,000 for their waitlist
They pull from that 2,000 as space becomes available

Other States

Indiana and Texas require families to update or call every 90 days to remain on the waitlist.
Louisiana families must be eligible to be put on the waitlist but may have to reapply if they have been on for over a year.
Texas families are screened for basic eligibility to be placed on the waitlist and apply when they are selected.

Refreshing waitlists is vital for organizations to determine funding needs and to give families a better idea of how long they may have to wait.

Some agencies managed their waitlists by limiting when people can apply to be added. Others didn't allow all applicant to join the waitlist, only selecting as many people as they thought they could serve. Other states require families to contact them quarterly to remain on the waitlist. While others require families to meet basic eligiblity to be placed on a waitlist.

Oregon's child care waitlist has always:

Allowed families to apply at any time
Allowed all families to remain on the waitlist regardless of available funding and
Allowed families to be placed on the list even if they didn't qualify at this time, giving them another opportunity to qualify when they are selected.

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Exploring waitlist changes

What we don’t want to do:

Limit when families can apply
Require families to be determined ERDC eligible to be placed on the waitlist
Ask families to notify us every 90 days that they wish to remain on the waitlist

What we may be able to do:

Not add families who were denied ERDC
Require families to pass a screening for basic eligibility

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What we can do now – �Changes to the refresh process

Longer response time – Families have 2 ½ months vs. 1 month
ONE system case note – each impacted family's case will have a note giving ODHS staff transparency into who needs to respond.
More reminders – Families will receive 2 letters vs. 1
Text reminders – 2 text reminders will go out two weeks after each letter to families who have opted into SMS texting.
Administrative review – families will have the opportunity to request an administrative review if they disagree with the decision to be removed from the waitlist.

We closely reviewed the suggestion from advocates and the union to require a response to remove a family from the waitlist, instead of requiring a response to remain on the waitlist.

Considering the research and consultation from other states, we determined the current approach was the most resource efficient and effective way to identify families who are interested in remaining on the waitlist.

As a result of the concerns raised:

We lengthened the time, included more reminders, included text messaging for those who have indicated they want to receive texts.

We will be adding a case note the date the letter is mailed.

ODHS staff will be able to immediately help families by accessing the response sheet and submitting a response for them during any appointments or phone conversations.

Families who disagree will be able to request an administrative review.

CCAP will review records to see if there is an indication that a family attempted to submit or requested ODHS to submit a response on their behalf and it was not recorded.

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How will the refresh work?

08/13/2025: Letters sent to families on the waitlist for over 12 months.
08/14/2025: Case note added for all impacted families.
08/27/2025: A text is sent to those who have opted into SMS texting
10/01/2025: A reminder letter is sent
10/15/2025: A reminder text is sent
10/31/2025: The response window closes at 11:59 PM.
11/10/2025: A decision notice is sent to those who did not respond.

The response submission timeframe is open from 08/13/2025 to 10/31/2025

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Waitlist Refresh Letter

Waitlist Response Form

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FAQ’s

Where can I get more information?

E-mail childcare.policy@delc.oregon.gov

When will the new waitlist numbers be available?

November 12, 2025

Can removed families get back in line?

Yes, but not in their original spot. They must reapply and will be placed at the end of the waitlist.

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Getting the news out

ERDC policy staff will be meeting with ODHS, partners and advocates in June and July. A media release is scheduled for the beginning of August.

Direct Pay Unit

Child Care Licensing Division

Policy Team

Early Learning Advocates

Child Care Resource and Referrals

Early Learning Hubs

Child Care Analyst Hour for ODHS eligibility staff

OEP Eligibility Updates for Leadership

Engagement Specialist Quarterly

Lead Engagement

Child Care Leadership Team

OPAR, Hearings, Program Managers

Let us know if there is a meeting you would like us to join to share more.

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Questions?

Contact:

ChildCare.Policy@DELC.Oregon.gov