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Washington, D.C.-The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have agreed to extend through the current fiscal year and substantially broaden the reach of the child-care tuition assistance program the parties initially put in place last July. The IRS will fund the expanded program with $1 million through September 30.

NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley said the extension and improvements to the program "will provide a meaningful opportunity for more families" to receive tuition assistance to help meet their child care needs-including any full-time or part-time permanent IRS employee, a definition that includes those working a seasonal work schedule. The IRS employs thousands of seasonal workers, primarily during the tax-filing season.

Kelley added that this is the kind of family-friendly program that can help attract and retain qualified workers into public service, and that it adopts an important benefit offered by leading organizations in the private sector.

Under the modifications, employees whose total family income in calendar 2000 did not exceed $45,000 and who have a child through the age of 13 either enrolled or planning to be enrolled in a licensed child care facility will be eligible to apply for the program. Licensed child

care facilities include a "properly certified home-care arrangement."

Kelley noted that NTEU has long been the leader in promoting family-friendly workplace policies, and pushed hard for the child care tuition assistance program, which was approved by Congress as a pilot program a year ago.

After extensive lobbying by NTEU, the program later was extended by Congress through Sept. 30, 2001. NTEU is working hard to make the program a permanent part of the federal employee benefit package.

Under the expanded NTEU-IRS program, the actual amount of assistance will depend on certification of eligibility of those who apply, but the parties estimate that each employee selected will receive the lesser of their actual child care costs or approximately $400 per month. Those with the lowest total family income will be selected for assistance first.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing some 150,000 employees in 25 agencies and departments, including more than 98,000 in the IRS.