Sec. 5. Application and plan

4,417 words·~20 min read·/bill/113/s/1086/is/section-5

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

Section 658E(b) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858c(b)) is amended, by striking 2-year and inserting 3-year . Section 658E(c) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 9858c(c) ) is amended— in paragraph (1), by inserting or established after designated ; in paragraph (2)— in subparagraph (B), by inserting a comma after care of such providers ; by striking subparagraphs

(D)through (H); and by adding at the end the following: The plan shall include a certification that the State, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2013 , will make public by electronic means, in a consumer-friendly and easily accessible format, organized by provider, the results of monitoring and inspection reports, including those due to major substantiated complaints about failure to comply with this subchapter and State child care policies, as well as the number of deaths, serious injuries, and instances of substantiated child abuse that occurred in child care settings each year, for eligible child care providers within the State. The plan shall include a certification that the State will collect and disseminate (which dissemination may be done, except as otherwise specified in this subparagraph, through resource and referral organizations and other means as determined by the State) to parents of eligible children and the general public— information that will promote informed child care choices and that concerns— the availability of child care services provided through programs authorized under this subchapter and, if feasible, other child care services provided in the State; if available, information about the quality of providers, including information from a Quality Rating and Improvement System; information, made available through a State website, describing the State process for licensing child care providers, the State processes for conducting background checks, and monitoring and inspections, of child care providers, and the offenses that prevent individuals and entities from serving as child care providers in the State; the availability of assistance to obtain child care services; other programs for which families that receive child care services for which financial assistance is provided in accordance with this subchapter may be eligible, including the program of block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families established under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 601 et seq. ), Head Start and Early Head Start programs carried out under the Head Start Act ( 42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq. ), the program carried out under the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981 (42 U.S.C. 8621 et seq.), the supplemental nutrition assistance program established under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 ( 7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq. ), the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children established by section 17 of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 ( 42 U.S.C. 1786 ), the child and adult care food program established under section 17 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1766 ), and the Medicaid and State children's health insurance programs under titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq. and 1397aa et seq.); programs carried out under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419 and 1431 et seq.); and research and best practices concerning children's development, including language and cognitive development, development of early language and literacy and mathematics skills, social and emotional development, meaningful parent and family engagement, and physical health and development; information on developmental screenings, including— information on existing (as of the date of submission of the application containing the plan) resources and services the State can deploy, including the coordinated use of the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment program under the Medicaid program carried out under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) and developmental screening services available under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et seq.), in conducting developmental screenings and providing referrals to services, when appropriate, for children who receive assistance under this subchapter; and a description of how a family or eligible child care provider may utilize the resources and services described in subclause

(I)to obtain developmental screenings for children who receive assistance under this subchapter who may be at risk for cognitive or other developmental delays; and information, for parents receiving assistance under the program of block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 601 et seq. ), and low-income parents, about eligibility for assistance provided in accordance with this subchapter. The plan shall include a certification that the State involved has in effect licensing requirements applicable to child care services provided within the State, and provide a detailed description of such requirements and of how such requirements are effectively enforced. If the State uses funding received under this subchapter to support a child care provider that is exempt from the corresponding licensing requirements described in clause (i), the plan shall include a description stating— how children receiving services from such a provider will receive services that are comparable in safety and quality to the services received by children served by licensed child care providers; and why such licensing exemption does not endanger the health, safety, or development of children who receive services from child care providers who are exempt from such requirements. The plan shall describe the training requirements that are in effect within the State that are designed to enable child care providers to promote the social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development of children and that are applicable to child care providers that provide services for which assistance is provided in accordance with this subchapter in the State. The plan shall provide an assurance that such training requirements— provide a set of workforce and competency standards for child care providers that provide services described in clause (i); are developed in consultation with the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care (designated or established pursuant to section 642B(b)(1)(A) of the Head Start Act ( 42 U.S.C. 9837b(b)(1)(A) )); include an evidence-based training framework that is designed to promote children's learning and development and school readiness and to improve child outcomes, including school readiness; incorporate knowledge and application of the State's early learning and developmental guidelines and, where applicable, the State's child development and health standards; and to the extent practicable, are appropriate for a population of children that includes— different age groups (such as infants, toddlers, and preschoolers); English learners; and children with disabilities. In developing the requirements, the State shall develop a statewide progression of professional development designed to improve the skills and knowledge of the workforce, which may include the acquisition of course credit in postsecondary education or of a credential, aligned with the framework. The State shall engage the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care, and may engage institutions of higher education (as defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1002 )), and other training providers in aligning training opportunities with the State’s training framework. The Secretary shall not require an individual or entity that provides child care services for which assistance is provided in accordance with this subchapter to acquire a credential to provide such services. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a State from requiring a credential. The plan shall describe child care standards, for child care for which assistance is made available in accordance with this subchapter, appropriate to the type of child care setting involved, that address— group size limits for specific age populations; the appropriate ratio between the number of children and the number of providers, in terms of the age of the children in child care, as determined by the State; and required qualifications for such providers. The Secretary may offer guidance to States on child-to-provider ratios described in clause

(i)according to setting and age group but shall not require that States maintain specific child-to-provider ratios for providers who receive assistance under this subchapter. The plan shall include a certification that there are in effect within the State, under State or local law, requirements designed to protect the health and safety of children that are applicable to child care providers that provide services for which assistance is made available in accordance with this subchapter. Such requirements— shall relate to matters including health and safety topics (including prevention of shaken baby syndrome and abusive head trauma) consisting of— the prevention and control of infectious diseases (including immunization) and the establishment of a grace period that allows homeless children to receive services under this subchapter while their families are taking any necessary action to comply with immunization and other health and safety requirements; handwashing and universal health precautions; the administration of medication, consistent with standards for parental consent; the prevention of and response to emergencies due to food and other allergic reactions; prevention of sudden infant death syndrome and use of safe sleeping practices; sanitary methods of food handling; building and physical premises safety; emergency response planning including disaster preparation; the handling and storage of hazardous materials and the appropriate disposal of biocontaminants; identification of and protection from hazards that can cause bodily injury such as electrical hazards, bodies of water, and vehicular traffic; for providers that offer transportation, if applicable, appropriate precautions in transporting children; first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation; and minimum health and safety training, to be completed pre-service or during an orientation period, appropriate to the provider setting involved that addresses each of the requirements relating to matters described in subclauses

(I)through (XII); and may include requirements relating to nutrition and access to physical activity. The plan shall include a certification that procedures are in effect to ensure that child care providers within the State, that provide services for which assistance is made available in accordance with this subchapter, comply with all applicable State and local health and safety requirements as described in subparagraph (I). The plan shall include a certification that the State, not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2013 , shall have in effect policies and practices, applicable to licensing for child care providers that provide services for which assistance is made available in accordance with this subchapter and the facilities of those providers, that— ensure that individuals who are hired as licensing inspectors in the State are qualified to inspect those child care providers and facilities and have received training in related health and safety requirements, child development, child abuse prevention and detection, program management, and relevant law enforcement; require licensing inspectors of those child care providers and facilities to perform inspections, with— not less than 1 prelicensure health, safety, and fire inspection of each such child care provider and facility in the State; and not less than annually, a health, safety, and fire inspection (which shall be unannounced) of each such child care provider and facility in the State; and require the ratio of licensing inspectors to such child care providers and facilities in the State to be maintained at a level sufficient to enable the State to conduct inspections of such child care providers and facilities on a timely basis in accordance with Federal and State law. The plan shall include a certification that child care providers within the State will comply with the child abuse reporting requirements of section 106(b)(2)(B)(i) of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5106a(b)(2)(B)(i) ). The plan shall describe how the State will develop and implement strategies (which may include the provision of compensation at higher payment rates and bonuses to child care providers, the provision of direct contracts or grants to community-based organizations, or other means determined by the State) to increase the supply and improve the quality of child care for— children in underserved areas; infants and toddlers; children with disabilities, as defined in subparagraphs

(A)and

(D)of section 658P(3); and children who receive care during nontraditional hours. The plan shall describe the procedures and policies that are in place to ensure that working parents (especially parents in families receiving assistance under the program of block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 601 et seq. )) are not required to unduly disrupt their employment in order to comply with the State's requirements for redetermination of eligibility for assistance provided in accordance with this subchapter. The plan shall demonstrate that each child who receives assistance under this subchapter in the State will be considered to meet all eligibility requirements for such assistance (except for a factor described in clause (iii), for a State not covered by clause (iii)) and will receive such assistance, for not less than 12 months before the State redetermines the eligibility of the child under this subchapter, regardless of a change in the status of the child's parent as working or attending a job training or educational program or a change in family income for the child's family, if that family income does not exceed 85 percent of the State median income for a family of the same size. The plan shall demonstrate how the State's processes for initial determination and redetermination of such eligibility take into account irregular fluctuations in earnings. At the option of the State, the plan shall demonstrate that the State will not terminate assistance provided to carry out this subchapter based on a factor consisting of a parent's loss of work or cessation of attendance at a job training or educational program for which the family was receiving the assistance, without continuing the assistance for a reasonable period of time, of not less than 3 months, after such loss or cessation in order for the parent to engage in a job search and resume work, or resume attendance at a job training or educational program, as soon as possible. The plan shall describe the policies and procedures that are in place to allow for provision of continued assistance to carry out this subchapter, for a period of not to exceed 12 months, for children of working parents who become ineligible for assistance to carry out this subchapter during the redetermination process due to a modest increase in the parents’ income, if the family income for the family involved does not exceed 85 percent of the State median income for a family of the same size. The plan shall describe how the State, in order to expand accessibility and continuity of quality early childhood education and care, and assist children enrolled in part-day prekindergarten or part-day Head Start programs to receive full-day services, will coordinate the services supported to carry out this subchapter with— programs carried out under the Head Start Act ( 42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq. ), including the Early Head Start programs carried out under section 645A of that Act (42 U.S.C. 9840a); programs carried out under part A of title I, and part B of title IV, of title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq. , 7171 et seq.); programs carried out under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ( 20 U.S.C. 1419 , 1431 et seq.); the maternal, infant, and early childhood home visiting programs authorized under section 511 of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 711 ), as added by section 2951 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; State and locally funded early childhood education and care programs; programs serving homeless children and services of local educational agency liaisons for homeless children and youths designated under subsection (g)(1)(J)(ii) of section 722 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11432 ); and other Federal programs supporting early childhood education and care activities. Nothing in clause

(i)shall be construed to affect the priority of children described in clause

(i)to receive full-day prekindergarten or Head Start program services. The plan shall demonstrate how the State encourages partnerships among State agencies, other public agencies, and private entities to leverage existing service delivery systems (as of the date of the submission of the application containing the plan) for early childhood education and care and to increase the supply and quality of child care services for children who are less than 13 years of age, such as by implementing voluntary shared services alliance models to allow providers more time and resources to provide higher quality of care at lower cost by realizing small economies of scale. The plan shall describe the process the State proposes to use, with respect to investments made to increase access to programs providing high-quality early childhood education and care, to give priority for those investments to children of families in areas that have significant concentrations of poverty and unemployment and that do not have such programs. The plan shall include a certification that the State has developed the plan in consultation with the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care established pursuant to section 642B(b)(1)(A) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9837b(b)(1)(A)). The plan shall include a certification that the payment practices of child care providers in the State that serve children who receive assistance under this subchapter reflect generally accepted payment practices of child care providers in the State that serve children who do not receive assistance under this subchapter, so as to provide stability of funding and encourage more child care providers to serve children who receive assistance under this subchapter. The plan shall include an assurance that the State will develop or implement early learning and developmental guidelines that are appropriate for children from birth through entry into kindergarten, describing what such children should know and be able to do, and covering the essential domains of early childhood education and care and early childhood development for use statewide by child care providers. Such child care providers shall— be licensed or regulated under State law; and not be a relative of all children for whom the provider provides child care services. The guidelines shall be research-based, be developmentally appropriate, and be aligned with State standards for education in kindergarten through grade 3. The plan shall include an assurance that funds received by the State to carry out this subchapter will not be used to develop or implement an assessment for children that— will be the sole basis for a child care provider being determined to be ineligible to participate in the program carried out under this subchapter; will be used as the primary or sole basis to provide a reward or sanction for an individual provider; or will be used as the primary or sole method for assessing program effectiveness. Nothing in this subchapter shall preclude the State using a single assessment for children for— improving instruction or a classroom environment; targeting professional development to a provider; determining the need for health, mental health, disability, developmental delay, or family support services; obtaining information for the quality improvement process at the State level; or conducting a program evaluation for the purposes of providing program improvement and parent information. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize an officer or employee of the Federal Government to— mandate, direct, or control a State's early learning and developmental guidelines, developed in accordance with this section; establish any criterion that specifies, defines, or prescribes the standards or measures that a State uses to establish, implement, or improve— early learning and developmental guidelines, or early learning standards, assessments, or accountability systems; or alignment of early learning and developmental guidelines with State standards for education in kindergarten through grade 3; or require a State to submit such standards or measures for review. ; in paragraph (3)— in subparagraph (A), by striking as required under and inserting in accordance with ; in subparagraph (B)— by striking The State and inserting the following: The State ; by striking and any other activity that the State deems appropriate to realize any of the goals specified in paragraphs

(2)through

(5)of section 658A(b) and inserting activities that improve access to child care services, including use of procedures to permit immediate enrollment (after the initial eligibility determination and after a child is determined to be eligible) of homeless children while required documentation is obtained, training and technical assistance on identifying and serving homeless children and their families, and specific outreach to homeless families, and any other activity that the State determines to be appropriate to meet the purposes of this subchapter (which may include an activity described in clause (ii)) ; and by adding at the end the following: A State may use amounts described in clause

(i)to establish or support a system of local or regional child care resource and referral organizations that is coordinated, to the extent determined appropriate by the State, by a statewide public or private nonprofit, community-based or regionally based, lead child care resource and referral organization. The local or regional child care resource and referral organizations supported as described in subclause

(I)shall— provide parents in the State with consumer education information referred to in paragraph (2)(E) (except as otherwise provided in that paragraph), concerning the full range of child care options, analyzed by provider, including child care provided during nontraditional hours and through emergency child care centers, in their political subdivisions or regions; to the extent practicable, work directly with families who receive assistance under this subchapter to offer the families support and assistance, using information described in item (aa), to make an informed decision about which child care providers they will use, in an effort to ensure that the families are enrolling their children in high-quality care; collect and analyze data on the coordination of services and supports, including services under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1419 , 1431 et seq.), for children with disabilities (as defined in section 602 of such Act ( 20 U.S.C. 1401 )); collect and analyze data on the supply of and demand for child care in political subdivisions or regions within the State and submit such data and analysis to the State; work to establish partnerships with public agencies and private entities to increase the supply and quality of child care services in the State; and as appropriate, coordinate their activities with the activities of the State lead agency and local agencies that administer funds made available in accordance with this subchapter. ; in subparagraph (D)— by striking 1997 through 2012 and inserting 2014 through 2019 ; and by striking paragraph (2)(H) and inserting paragraph (2)(M) ; and by adding at the end the following: From amounts provided to a State for a fiscal year to carry out this subchapter, the State shall— reserve the minimum amount required to be reserved under section 658G, and the funds for costs described in subparagraph (C); and from the remainder, use not less than 70 percent to fund direct services (provided by the State) in accordance with paragraph (2)(A). ; by striking paragraph

(4)and inserting the following: The State plan shall certify that payment rates for the provision of child care services for which assistance is provided in accordance with this subchapter are sufficient to ensure equal access for eligible children to child care services that are comparable to child care services in the State or substate area involved that are provided to children whose parents are not eligible to receive assistance under this subchapter or to receive child care assistance under any other Federal or State program and shall provide a summary of the facts relied on by the State to determine that such rates are sufficient to ensure such access. The State plan shall— demonstrate that the State has, after consulting with the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and Care, local child care program administrators, local child care resource and referral agencies, and other appropriate entities, developed and conducted (not earlier than 2 years before the date of the submission of the application containing the State plan) a statistically valid and reliable survey of the market rates for child care services in the State (that reflects variations in the cost of child care services by geographic area, type of provider, and age of child); demonstrate that the State prepared a detailed report containing the results of the State market rates survey conducted pursuant to clause (i), and made the results of the survey widely available (not later than 30 days after the completion of such survey) through periodic means, including posting the results on the Internet; describe how the State will set payment rates for child care services, for which assistance is provided in accordance with this subchapter, in accordance with the results of the market rates survey conducted pursuant to clause

(i)without, to the extent practicable, reducing the number of families in the State receiving such assistance to carry out this subchapter, relative to the number of such families on the date of enactment of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2013 ; and describe how the State will provide for timely payment for child care services provided in accordance with this subchapter. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to create a private right of action. Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed to prevent a State from differentiating the payment rates described in subparagraph (B)(iii) on the basis of such factors as— geographic location of child care providers (such as location in an urban or rural area); the age or particular needs of children (such as the needs of children with disabilities and children served by child protective services); whether the providers provide child care during weekend and other nontraditional hours; or the State's determination that such differentiated payment rates are needed to enable a parent to choose child care that is of high quality. ; and in paragraph (5), by inserting that is not a barrier to families receiving assistance under this subchapter after cost sharing . Section 658F(b)(2) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 ( 42 U.S.C. 9858d(b)(2) ) is amended by striking section 658E(c)(2)(F) and inserting section 658E(c)(2)(I) .

Connectionstraces to 18

Traces to 18 documents

U.S. Code