Two new guides have been released to promote dependent care assistant programs. The guides, one aimed at employers and one at employees, offer suggestions for making such plans easy to use, and include eligibility guidelines, tax benefits and other tips.

"Despite the many benefits of DCAPs, we find that many employees who qualify for these programs don't participate at all or don't take full advantage of them because of their complexity and paperwork. These guides will help employers 'de-mystify' the process for employees by making these programs easier to understand and easier to use — which in turn, will help employees save money," said Louise Stoney, co-founder of the Alliance on Early Childhood Finance.

The guides were released by the American Business Collaboration, a coalition of U.S. companies, and Corporate Voices for Working Families, a nonprofit corporate organization. Both can be downloaded at www.abcdependentcare.com.