Statement of Scope
Department of
Children and Families
Relating to:
Payment of
the
Child Care Subsidy
for Low-Income Families
Rule Type:
Emergency and Permanent
This statement of scope was approved by the governor
on
November 4
, 2016
.
1. Finding/nature of emergency (
for
emergency rule
s
only)
An emergency rule is necessary to implement
the department’s new system for
payment of the
child care
subsidy
for low-income families
in February 2017, as
specified in the department’s plan
approved by the Joint Committee
on Finance
.
2
.
Detailed description of the objective of the
rule
s
Parent Payments Replacing Provider Reimbursement
The
emergency
and proposed
rules will implement a new system for payment of the child care subsidy for low-income families.
Currently, after providing child care services for a child whose care is subsidized,
a child care
provider has up
to
3 months to submit
to the department
a request for reimbursement
with
attendance report forms
. The department pays the child care subsidy directly to the provider
with minimal involvement by the parent. The
parent
pays
the provider the
difference between the subsidy amount and the
provider’s price,
including a required copayment based on family size, income level, and other factors.
Under the
new system,
child care
providers will no longer be
billing
the
department
for reimbursement.
Payment arrangements will be between the provider and the parent
.
The department
and a third
-party EBT vendor will make the
subsidy amount
electronically
available to
the
parent at the beginning of a month.
The parent will be able to transfer
payments
to the provider
via a website; telephone IVR (interactive voice response) system; or, if the provider
chooses
to lease the equipment, a point-of-
sale
card
swipe
system.
The f
unds will remain electronically
available to the parent for payment to the authorized provider for
90 days and will then expire. The funds will only be transferrable to the specific provider for whom the parent received an authorization
.
Parents will continue to pay the difference between the
provider’s price and
the subsidy amount from their own funds.
Currently, an agency generally issues an
authorization for payment based on enrollment
if the care will be by a licensed group provider
. A
uthorization
s
for payment based on attendance
are used
if the care will be by a licensed family provider or a certified provider.
With the new system, t
here wi
ll no longer be
two types of authorizations.
Authorizations
for payment
for
child
care by all types of providers will be
based on a family’s need for care
.
Under the current
payment
system,
after an applicant is determined to be eligible,
a payment
authorization
can be backdated to the Sunday begi
nning the first week of the
month
if a provider who met the department’s requirements for receiving subsidy payments has cared for the child
during this time
.
Under
the new system, an authorization for payment
may
be backdated to the date of the parent’s request for assistance.
The
emergency and proposed
rulemaking orders
will
update ch.
DCF 201
to conform to the language and policies of the new system for subsidy payments. This will include repealing o
bsole
te language,
such as
vouchers,
enrollment and attendance-based authorizations
,
provider recordkeeping and reporting requirements
, adjustment of
enrollment
-based
authorizations based on attendance
report forms
,
reimbursement to provider
s
, refusal to issue payments to providers, and recoupment from providers
.
Since providers may b
e submitting attendance report forms
and requests for reimbursement for 3 months after the effective date of the emergency rule, some transitional provisions relating to
attendance records,
provider reimbursement, refusal to issue payment to providers, and recoupment from providers
wi
ll remain in the emergency rule for issues related to
payment for
care provided before the effective date of the rule.
Continuity of Care
to Support Parents and Minimize Disruptions to Child’s Development
The emergency and propo
sed rules will also implement
new requirement
s
in federal regulations that
were adopted
on
September 30, 2016.
The regulations provide that a
s
tate sha
ll re-determine a child’s eligibility for child care services no sooner than 12 months following the initial
eligibility
determination or most recent
redetermination. Between the initial determination and redetermination,
s
tates are required to
allow subsidy
payments to
continue at the same level
during a parent’s temporary absence from approved activities for a period not to exceed 3 months
. F
ollowing a parent’s l
oss or cessation
of employment or approved activities
that is not temporary, s
tates are required to allow subsidy payments to continue at the same level for a period of at least 3 months.
Minor Clarificati
o
ns
The rulemaking orders will also
include minor
changes to update and
clarify program requirements, including the following:
•
Create a provision in ch.
DCF 201
that requires an individual to
furnish a child care administrative agency with any relevant information that the agency determines is necessary, within 7 working days after receiving a request for the information from the agency
.
This requirement already exists in s.
49.145 (2)
, Stats., which applies to the child care subsidy program under s.
49.155 (1m) (b) 1.
, Stats.
•
Repeal a section in the Wisconsin Works rules that only applies to the child care subsidy and
incorporate the information
into ch.
DCF 201
. Wisconsin statutes define “Wisconsin Works” as the assistance program for families with dependent children, administered under ss.
49.141
to
49.161
, Stats.
This definition includes
the child care subsidy program in s.
49.155
, Stats. I
n earlier years, subsidy
requirements that applied to parents were included in the Wisconsin Works rules, and requirements that applied to providers
were included in the
subsidy rules. The department is now moving toward consolidating
child care subsidy
requirements as much as possible.
•
R
epeal
a
provision
that
authorizes use of the child care subsidy program for
care by an
unregulated child care provider when t
he care
allows
a food stamp employment and training program
(FSET)
enrollee to attend a program activity prior to the development of an employability plan.
T
he
FSET program does not have
program
activities
prior to the develo
pment of an employability plan
, so this provision is obsolete
.
•
Incorporate a p
olicy definition into the rule
. The current rule requires
that
a
chi
ld care administrative agency
redetermine
a parent’s
eligibility and subsi
dy amount in a “timely manner”
when the parent reports a change in circumstances.
Timely redeterminations help to prevent payment errors.
The rules will
incorporate the current department policy that
require
s
redeterminations within 2 working days
after a parent’s report of a change in circumstances.
No Waivers of
the Immunization Requirement
Based on Personal Conviction
The proposed rules will
also
require that children whose care is subsidized
under s.
49.155
, Stats.,
receive age-appropriate immunizations or obtain
an exemption
for
a reason
permitted
under federal
Child Care Development Fund (CCDF)
regulations.
For children whose care is subsidized by the CCDF,
45 CFR 98.41
(a) (1) (i) allows a
n exemption of the immunization requirement
for
children
in child care centers
whose parents object on religious grounds and children whose medical condition contraindicates im
munization.
In Wisconsin, s.
252.04
, Stats.,
requires that
children in
child care centers and students in elementary,
middle, junior, and high school
receive age-app
ropriate immunizations,
unless the requirement is waived under s.
252.04 (3)
, Stats. This provision allows a waiver
if
a
parent or
student
objects for reasons of health, religion, or personal conviction.
The federal Administration for Children and Families, Office of Child Care
,
has approved
the state’s
CCDF plan for 2016
−
2018
with conditions that include
not allowing a waiver
of age-appropriate immunization requirements based on
a parent’s
person
al conviction for children whose care is sub
sidized under s.
49.155
, Stats.
3. Detailed explanation of statutory authority for the rule
s
The department administers the child care subsidy program under s.
49.155
, Stats. Section
49.155
,
(3m) (a)
, Stats., as affected by
2013 Wisco
nsin Act 20
, provides that the department
shall issue benefits directly to individuals who are eligible for subsidies
under this section or pay or
reimburse child care providers.
Section
49.131
(3m)
, Stats., as affected by
2013 Wisconsin Act 20
,
provides that
prior to implementing
,
and receiving funding for implementing
,
electronic benefit transfer of child care subsidies under s.
49.155
, Stats.
, the department’s implementation plan must be approved by the Joint Committee on Finance.
The Committee
approved the department’s plan on January 12, 2015
.
Section
49.155 (1m)
Stats., specifies eligibility conditions for receiving a child care subsidy. Section
49.155 (1m) (d)
, Stats., provides that an individual may receive a subsidy if the individual satisfies other eligibility criteria established by the department by rule.
Section
49.155 (1m) (g)
, Stats., provides that, except as provided in par. (bm), the individual
may rec
eive a subsidy if he or she
meet
s
the eligibility criteria under s.
49.145 (2) (f)
,
(g)
, and
(s)
, Stats. Section
49.145 (2) (g)
is a nonfinancial eligibility requirement for Wisconsin Works
(W
-
2) employment positions and job access loans that provides that an individual is eligible in a
month only if t
he individua
l furnishes the W-2
agency with
any relevant infor
mation that the W-2
agency determines
is necessary, consistent with rules promulgated by the
department, within 7 working days after receiving a request for the
infor
mation from the W
-
2 agency. The W
-
2
agency may extend the 7
-
day time limit for an individual
for whom compliance with that limit would be unduly burdensome,
as
determined by the
W
-
2 agency.
Section
49.155 (1) (ah)
, Stats., provides that “county department or agency” means a county department under s.
46.215
,
46.22
, or
46.23
, Stats., the unit, as defined in s.
49.825 (1) (e)
, Stats., or a Wisconsin Works agency, child care resource and referral agency, or other agency.
Section
49.155 (1m) (a)
3m.
, Stats., provides that an individual may receive a subsidy for child care to p
articipate in a job search or work experience component
of the food stamp employment and training program under s.
49.79 (9)
, Stats.
Section
49.151
(2)
, Stats., provides that if the department, or a county department or agency under contract under s.
49.155 (1m)
, Stats., determines that an individual applying for or receiving benefits under ss.
49.141
to
49.161
, Stats., for the purpose of establishing or maintaining eligibility for those benefits or for the purpose of increasing the value of those benefits, has committed an intentional program
violation related to any provision in ss.
49.141
to
49.161
or any rule promulgated under those sections, the county department or agency under contract under s.
49.155 (1m)
, Stats., or the department shall deny benefits under ss.
49.141
to
49.161
to
the individual
for 6 months for a
first intentional program violation,
one year
f
or a 2nd intentional program violation,
and
permanently
for
a 3rd intentional program violation
.
Section
227.11 (2) (a)
, Stats., expressly confers rule-making authority on each agency to promulgate rules interpreting the provisions of any statute enforced or administered by the agency.
4
.
Estimate of amount of time that state employees will spend developing the rule and of other resources necessary to develop the rule
s
300
hours
5
.
List with description of all entities that
may
be affected by the
emergency and
proposed rule
s
Low-income f
amilies
who receive
a child care subsidy under s.
49.155
, Stats., c
hild care providers who care for children whose care is subsidized under s.
49.155
, Stats., and child care administrative agencies.
6
.
Summary and preliminary comparison with any existing or proposed federal regulation that is intended to address the activities to be regulated by the
emergency and
proposed rule
s
45 CFR 98.41
provide
s
that
each state
shall assure that children receiving services under the CCDF a
re age-appropriately immunized based on the l
atest recommendation for childhood immunizati
o
ns by the
state public health agency. Exemptions are available for all of the following:
•
Children who are cared for by relatives (defined as grandparents, great grandparents, siblings (if living in a separate
residence)
, aunts, and uncles).
•
Children who
receive care in their own homes.
•
Children whose parents object to immuni
zation on religious grounds.
•
Children whose medical conditi
on contraindicates immunization.
45 CFR
98.21
(a)
(1)
(ii)
provides that a
Lead Agency shall re-determine a child’s eligibility for child care services no sooner than 12 months following the initial determination or most recent redetermination
and d
uring the period of time between det
erminations or redeterminations of eligibility, a
child shall be considered eligible and
shall
receive services at least a
t the same level, regardless of a
temporary change in the ongoing status of the child’s parent as working or attending a job training or educational program.
A temporary change shall include, at a minimum
, all of the following
:
•
Any time-limited absence from work for an employed parent due to reasons such as need to care for
a family member or an illness.
•
Any interruption in work for a seasonal worker who is not working between regular industry work
seasons.
•
Any student holiday or break for a parent participating in training or education
.
•
Any reduction in work, training or education hours, as long as the parent is still working or
attending training or education.
•
Any other cessation of work or attendance at a training or education program that does not exceed three months or a longer period of time
established by the Lead Agency.
45
CFR 98.21
(a) (2) (i)
provides that
Lead Agencies have the option, but are not required, to discontinue assistance due to a parent’s loss of work or cessation of attendance at a job training or educational program that does not constitute a temporary change in accordance with paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section. However, if the Lead Agency exercises this option, it must continue assistance at least at the same level for a period of not less than three months after each such loss or cessation in order for the
parent to engage in job search and resume work, or resume attendance at a job training or educational activity.
7
. Anticipated economic impact of implementing the rule
s
(note if the rule is likely to have a significant economic impact on small businesses)
C
hild care providers
will no longer be required to
submit
attendance
report forms
to the department
and
will receive subsidy payments more quickly
.
A
uthorizations
will need to
more accurately reflect when the family needs child care
, which may result in a slight increase in workload for child care administrative agencies.
Parents will have
more
responsibil
ity
for submitting precise information on times child care is needed and for
understanding the payment structure and
making appropriate payments.
Contact Person
s
:
