Marriott Wardman Park Hotel February 22, 2015

Transcription

1 Joint Meeting of the Healthy Counties Advisory Board, Health Steering Committee and the Human Services and Education Committee s Education, Children and Families Subcommittee on Early Childhood Development Marriott Wardman Park Hotel February 22, 2015

2 THANK YOU TO OUR HEALTHY COUNTIES SPONSORS

3 Tell Your County s What s Happening at the Joint Meeting #NACoHumanServices

4 Early Childhood 2015 Joan Lombardi February, 2015

5 Lets talk about.. Growing interest in early childhood Young children today Trends Policies and proposals

6 But first time to reflect back..

7 How the world has changed.

8 INCREASED RECOGNITION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE EARLY YEARS Growing scientific knowledge about why the early years are important Increased evidence of program effectiveness New champions

9 Increased interest coming from multiple perspectives Early Learning Health, Nutrition and Mental Health Family Support/Child Protection Reducing Inequality

10 Status of young children today Estimated 4 million children born in the United States

11 Percentage of people in poverty by age group, Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Historical Poverty Tables, Table 3.

12 Infants/toddlers living in deep poverty, poverty, and with low income Nearly half face economic hardship 80 Deep poverty (<50% FPL) Poverty Low Income (<200% FPL) 60 percent *Year reflects the year that the question was asked. Question was asked regarding the previous 12 months. Data refer to children residing with and related to the householder. The Youngest Americans / A report by The Robert R. McCormick Foundation and Child Trends 12

13 The word gap

14 Disparities between higher and lower income infants at 9 and 24 months Source: Halle, T., Forry, N., Hair, E., Perper, K., Wandner, L., Wessel, J., & Vick, J. (2009). Disparities in Early Learning and Development: Lessons from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Birth Cohort (ECLS-B). Washington, DC: Child Trends.

15 Mean Reading and Math Scores for Children in Kindergarten for the First Time in the School Year, by Parents Highest Level of Education Less than HS HS or Equiv. Some College or Voc. Bachelor's Grad/Prof 5 0 Mean Reading Scale Scores - Fall Mean Math Scale Scores - Fall Source: Mulligan, G.M., Hastedt, S., and McCarroll, J.C. (2012). First-Time Kindergartners in : First Findings From the Kindergarten Rounds of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of (ECLS-K:2011) (NCES ). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved [January 30, 2013] from Note: The assessment scale was 0-83 for the reading assessment and 0-75 for the mathematics assessment. Estimates based on a preliminary version of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of (ECLS-K:2011) restricted-use data file.

16 Child Well- Being in Rich Countries: A Comparative Overview Child well-being in rich countries. A comparative overview. UNICEF Office of Research, Innocenti Report Card 11

17 Where are We Today: The Challenge in the U.S. Opportunity gap Opportunity Gap Achievement gap Achievement Gap Productivity Gap Productivity gap

18 Trends

19 Early childhood prenatal- 8

20 PATH PATH TO TO EARLY SUCCESS SUCCESS Two Generation Path to Early Success Maternal Health and Prenatal Care Parenting and Family Support Family Economic Supports and Ongoing Education Child Health And Nutrition Quality Early Childhood Programs Quality Primary Schools

21 Tracking Child Development Healthy pregnancy and birth Thriving at 3 Eager and ready at 5 Successful at 8

22 Community hubs

23 Emerging Vision Old Think Learning begins at school Health or education Care vs education Child focus vs parent focus Individual programs at a single age New Think Learning begins at birth Health and education Care and education Two generations Continuity prenatal- 8 Place based

24 STEPS FORWARD $5 billion invested in the recovery Quality improvement plan for Head Start New Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program Early Learning Challenge Fund- 20 states Early Head Start Child Care Partnerships Preschool Development Plans Bipartisan reauthorization of the Child Care and Development Fund

25 Budget Proposals Expansion of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (tripling the maximum credit to $ per young child) Paid leave proposal Child care funding for infants and toddlers, innovation and changes in the law Head Start expansion including full day and EHS-Child Care Partnerships Preschool Development Grants

26 What s Next? Extending the Maternal, Infant, Early Childhood Home Visiting Program ESEA reauthorization Appropriation process

27 What does all this mean for your community?

28 Child Care & Development Block Grant Reauthorization: Opportunities for County Leaders February 22, 2015

29 What is CCDF Reauthorization? The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 (P.L ) was signed into law November 19, Reauthorizes the CCDF program for the first time since CCDF is a $5.3 billion block grant program that provides funding to States, Territories, and Tribes to provide access to child care services for lowincome families and improve the quality of child care. The CCDBG Act of 2014 renews authority for CCDF through FY 2020 and represents an historic re-envisioning of the program. Focused on better balancing dual purposes to promote economic stability for low-income families and support healthy development and learning needs of children.

30 New Purposes for CCDF Reauthorization provides a two-generational approach focused on the family as a whole, as well as helping parents support their children s development and learning. New language added by Congress includes: Promoting involvement by parents and family members in the development of their children in child care settings; Delivering high-quality, coordinated early childhood care and education services to maximize parents options; Improving the overall quality of child care services and programs; Improving child care and development of participating children; Increasing the number and percentage of low-income children in highquality child care settings.

31 Key Features of Reauthorization 12-month Eligibility Policies Payment Rates & Provider Payment Practices Consumer Education & Family Engagement Health & Safety Minimums in Licensing/Training Criminal Background Checks Monitoring Training & Professional Development Increased Quality Spending Infant & Toddler Set-aside Supply-building for Underserved Populations Tribal Provisions

32 Opportunities for Impact Children Families Teachers/Providers Communities

33 Provide Stable Child Care Assistance to Families Eligibility Policies(658E(c)(2)(N)): Establishes 12-month eligibility re-determination periods. CCDF families remain eligible during the 12-month period as long as income remains below 85% SMI. States have option to terminate assistance prior to re-determination if a parent loses employment, but must allow for a 3-month period for job search. At re-determination, must provide for a graduated phase-out of assistance for families whose income has increased beyond the initial State threshold, but remains below 85% of SMI. Eligibility re-determination should not require parents to unduly disrupt their employment.

34 Equal Access to High Quality for Low-income Children Equal Access and Rates(658E(c)(4)): Requires States to conduct a market rate survey, or use an alternative methodology, such as a cost estimation model, and describe how payment rates will be established based on results of the survey or alternative methodology, taking into account cost of providing higher quality services. Provider Payment Practices(658E(c)(2)(S)): States must establish policies that reflect generally accepted payment practices for child care providers, including (to the extent practicable) paying for absence days, and timely reimbursement for child care services. Build Supply for Underserved (658E(c)(2)(M)): States must develop strategies for increasing supply and quality of services for children in underserved areas, infants and toddlers, children with disabilities, and children in non-traditional hour care which may include use of grants/contracts and alternative payment.

35 Consumer Education & Linkages to Services States must collect and disseminate consumer education to parents receiving CCDF, the general public, and, where applicable, child care providers, including: Other financial assistance programs that families might be eligible for, including TANF, Head Start and Early Head Start, LIHEAP, SNAP, WIC, the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), Medicaid, and the State children s health insurance programs (SCHIP); Programs carried out under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA); Information on existing resources and services the State can provide to conduct developmental screenings and to provide referrals to services for children receiving CCDF assistance, including the coordinated use of EPSDT and development screening services available under section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA); and How a family or provider may use these resources to obtain developmental screenings.

36 Keeping Children Safe and Healthy Ensure Health and Safety of Children in Child Care New state requirements include: Establish licensing policies and provide training in 10 specific health and safety areas for CCDF providers*: (658E(c)(2)(I)) Explain any exemptions to licensing and why exemptions do not endanger health and safety of children in the care of such providers. (658E(c)(2)(F)(ii)) Conduct criminal background checks on all child care providers and their staff members. Not limited to providers serving CCDF children. Relative caregivers excluded. (658H) States must make available by electronic means provider-specific information showing results of monitoring and inspection reports. 658E(c)(2)(D)&(E)) *States continue to have the option to exempt relatives from CCDF health and safety requirements.

37 Ensure Health and Safety Monitoring Monitoring and Inspections (658E(c)(2)(K)) States must have monitoring and inspection requirements for CCDF providers that include: Licensed CCDF Providers 1 pre-licensure inspection for health, safety, and fire standards and annual, unannounced inspections. License-Exempt CCDF Providers Annual inspections for compliance with health, safety, and fire standards. States must ensure licensing inspectors are qualified and have received training in related health and safety requirements. Ratio of inspectors to providers must be sufficient to ensure visits occur in a timely manner.

38 Recruit & Retain Qualified and Effective Workforce Training & Professional Development (658E(c)(2)(G)): Requires establishment of professional development and training requirements to improve knowledge and skills of CCDF providers and the child care workforce. Professional development requirements should: Include ongoing, annual training and a progression of professional development (which may include postsecondary education) Include focus on social-emotional behavioral intervention models Incorporate State s Early Learning and Development Guidelines describing what children should know and be able to do. (Required at 658E(c)(2)(T)) New list of quality activities specifically identifies professional development and provider accreditation as allowable quality activities.

39 Increased Quality Set-Asides Federal Fiscal Year % Quality Set-aside % Infant and Toddler Total Quality Set-aside FFY % -- 7% FFY % 3% 10% FFY % 3% 11% FFY % 3% 11% FFY 2020 (and ongoing) 9% 3% 12%

40 Effective Dates New CCDF Program Requirements Criminal Background Checks Monitoring of Licensing and Regulatory Requirements Posting Results of Monitoring and Inspection Reports (Website) State compliance with Priority for Services CCDF State & Territory Plan (3-yr) FY CCDF State & Territory Plan (3-yr) FY FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019 FY 2020 FY /01/14 9/30/15 10/01/15 9/30/16 10/01/16 9/30/17 10/01/17 9/30/18 10/01/18 9/30/19 10/01/19 9/30/20 Planning/Implementation Compliance by 9/30/2017 Planning/Implementation Compliance by 11/19/2016 Planning/Implementation Planning/ Implementation Compliance by earlier of 11/19/2017 or 1 year after monitoring in place. Compliance by 9/30/ /01/20 9/30/21

41 The President s FY 2016 Proposed Budget for Child Care The FY 2016 request for Child Care of $9.4B is +$4B over FY 2015 enacted. Child Care Entitlement to States: +$3.6B in FY 2016 and +$82B over ten years to ensure that all low-income working families with young children have access to high-quality child care. Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG): +$266M targeted to help states implement new provisions of the CCDBG reauthorization that will increase quality, ensure continuity of services, and provide parents clear information about child care providers so they can make informed choices. Child Care Pilots for Working Families: +$100M for new pilots to test innovative strategies to better serve working families by addressing gaps in the delivery of child care.

42 Office of Child Care (OCC) Reauthorization Info CCDF Reauthorization Resource Page: Child Care Technical Assistance Network Reauthorization Resources can be found at Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ s) address: Comment on the CCDF pre-print for States FY by March 2 nd :

43 Thank you for all you do for children and families

44

45 the WHITE HOUSE PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA Contact Us BRIEFING ROOM ISSUES THE ADMINISTRATION PARTICIPATE 1600 PENN Search Home Briefing Room Statements & Releases The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release January 21, 2015 FACT SHEET: Helping All Working Families with Young Children Afford Child Care In today s economy, when having both parents in the workforce is an economic necessity for many families, we need affordable, high quality childcare more than ever. It s not a nice to have it s a must have. So it s time we stop treating childcare as a side issue, or as a women s issue, and treat it like the national economic priority that it is for all of us. President Obama, State of the Union Address, January 20, 2015 Helping working Americans meet the needs of their jobs and their families is a key part of the President s plan to bolster and expand the middle class. Access to high quality child care and early education not only promotes a child s development, but it also helps support parents who are struggling to balance work and family obligations. A safe, nurturing environment that enriches children s development is critical to working families and is one of the best investments we can make in our economy. Yet today, a year of child care costs higher than a year of in state tuition at most colleges putting a significant strain on parents. Ensuring that children have access to high quality and affordable early childhood programs can help children prepare for school and succeed in later life while strengthening parents ability to go to work, advance their career, and increase their earning potential. Research shows that money spent on young children is an effective investment, yielding benefits immediately to parents and for many decades to come for the children. For example, the President s Council of Economic Advisors report on the Economics of Early Childhood indicate that investments in high quality early education generate economic returns of over $8 for every $1 spent. Today, President Obama outlined his plan to make affordable, quality child care available to every working and middle class family with young children. His plan includes: Making a landmark investment in the Child Care and Development Fund that helps every eligible family with young children afford high quality child care. Tripling the maximum child care tax credit to $3,000 per young child. Creating a new innovation fund to help states design programs that better serve families that face unique challenges in finding quality care, such as those in rural areas or working non traditional hours. L AT E S T BL O G P O S T S February 19, :58 PM EST President Obama on the Causes and Antidotes to Violent Extremism President Obama speaks on the role that the U.S., countries, and communities can play in combating violence extremism at home and abroad. February 19, :36 PM EST Let s Get Every Kid in a Park February 19, :00 AM EST The 2015 Economic Report of the President The Council of Economic Advisers released the 69th annual Economic Report of the President, which reviews the United States accelerating recovery and explores fundamental economic issues impacting middle class families. VIEW ALL RELATED BLOG POSTS Two years ago, the President called for a continuum of high quality early learning for America s children including support for children and their parents beginning prenatally with evidence based home visitation for young children and new and expecting parents and continuing through high quality preschool for America s 4 year olds. Over the past two years, the federal government, states, philanthropists, and business leaders have invested nearly $3 billion in high quality preschool and early education. Today s announcement builds on these continuing efforts to make high quality early education and child care available for all. These investments to expand and strengthen child care and early education programs complement the Administration s other efforts to help working families, including offering workers the opportunity to earn paid sick and family leave, a higher minimum wage, and equal pay for women. Facebook Twitter Flickr Google+ YouTube Vimeo itunes LinkedIn NEW INVESTMENTS IN CHILD CARE AFFORDABILITY, QUALITY, AND AVAILABILITY Parents who work in low wage jobs can face real difficulties affording quality child care in 2013, the average cost of full time care for an infant at a child care center was about $10,000 per year higher than the average cost of in state tuition at a public 4 year college and much higher in some locations. Without help, many families can face the untenable choice of not working or leaving their children in unsafe, unstable, or poor quality child care arrangements. Affordable, quality childcare can help parents so they can go to work to support their family. Learning begins at birth, and the earliest years of a child s life are those most critical for building foundational cognitive skills, social and emotional skills, and patterns of engagement in school and learning. Studies show that children who attend high quality early learning programs including high quality child care are more likely to do well in school, find good jobs, have fewer interactions with the justice system, and have greater earnings as adults than those who don t. Increasing the supply of high quality, affordable child care can help parents balance

46 work and family responsibilities while also investing in young children. That s why this year the President proposes unprecedented investments in making quality child care affordable and available for working families by: Expanding access to child care assistance for all eligible families with children under four years of age, within ten years. The federal Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) helps low and moderateincome families with the cost of child care and increases the availability and quality of that care. States contribute matching resources for a portion of the CCDF funding they receive. But currently, federal and state funding for child care assistance falls well short of the need, and only a small share of young children receive federally funded child care subsidies. The President s proposal will ensure that all low and moderate income families (those with incomes below 200 percent of the poverty line, or approximately $40,000 for a family of three) with children age three and under have access to a subsidy to pay for quality child care so they can work or attend school or job training. By 2025, this investment will expand access to high quality care to more than 1 million additional young children, reaching a total of more than 2.6 million children served monthly through the child care subsidy system. To qualify for this funding, states will be required to develop sound plans for how they will build the supply of quality care for infants and toddlers and ensure that the subsidies they provide (when combined with reasonable copayments families can afford) will cover the cost of quality care. Cutting taxes for families paying child care with a credit of up to $3,000 per child. The President s tax proposal would streamline child care tax benefits and triple the maximum child care tax credit for middle class families with young children, increasing it to $3,000 per child. The President s child care tax proposals would benefit 5.1 million families, helping them cover child care costs for 6.7 million children (including 3.5 million children under five), through the following reforms: Triple the maximum Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) for families with children under five, increasing it to $3,000 per child. Families with young children face the highest child care costs. Under the President s proposal, they could claim a 50 percent credit for up to $6,000 of expenses per child under five. Make the full credit available to most middle class families. Under current law, almost no families qualify for the maximum CDCTC. The President s proposal would make the maximum credit for young children, older children, and elderly or disabled dependents available to families with incomes up to $120,000, meaning that most middle class families could easily determine how much help they can get. Eliminate complex child care flexible spending accounts and reinvest the savings in the improved CDCTC. The President s proposal would replace the current system of complex and duplicative incentives with one generous and simple child care tax benefit. Improving the quality of child care. Last year Congress acted on a bipartisan basis to pass child care legislation that includes much needed reforms to improve the quality and safety in child care settings, including requiring training for providers to prevent sudden infant death syndrome, instituting annual inspections of child care facilities, and comprehensive background checks of all providers. This proposal would provide the resources to help states implement those important reforms and support the expansion of access to quality child care programs staffed by early educators that can provide developmentally appropriate services that promote the healthy development and school readiness of young children Promoting Innovation in the Child Care Subsidy System. The President will also invest $100 million in new competitive grants to states, territories, tribes and communities to develop, implement and evaluate models of providing child care to address the unmet needs for families who face unique challenges to securing child care. These pilots could be used to develop promising practices for families in rural communities or have children with disabilities, parents who work non traditional hours, and other families who struggle to find and use high quality child care. A COMPREHENSIVE EARLY EDUCATION AGENDA In addition to the historic investment in helping every low income and middle class family afford child care, the President s FY16 budget will make critical investments to expand access to high quality early education, including: Providing Preschool for All: In his 2013 State of the Union, the Obama Administration announced a proposal to provide high quality preschool to every American child and the FY 2016 Budget will continue to support this historic public investment in early education and in the future of America s children. This $75 billion partnership with states would extend federal funds to expand high quality preschool to reach all lowand moderate income four year olds from families at or below 200% of poverty. The proposal, financed through an increase in tobacco taxes which will discourage youth smoking and save lives, also encourages states to broaden participation to reach additional middle income families and to expand the availability of full day kindergarten. In December 2014, the President and Vice President hosted the White House Summit on Early Childhood Education, highlighting over $1 billion in investments dedicated to early

47 childhood education and development, including new efforts to expand preschool across 18 states and in over 200 high need communities, reaching an additional 33,000 children. Supporting Infants and Toddlers through Early Head Start Child Care Partnerships: This Administration has more than doubled the number of infants and toddlers in Early Head Start and, in 2014, created the new Early Head Start Child Care Partnerships program an effort to provide quality care to tens of thousands of additional infants and toddlers through a partnership between Early Head Start and child care providers that meet the highest standards of quality to serve children from birth through age three. The Obama Administration has invested $500 million to support communities and proposes additional funding as they improve and expand comprehensive early care and education through the Early Head Start Child Care Partnerships program, reaching over 30,000 infants and toddlers this year. Increasing the duration of Head Start to a full school day and year. Head Start is a key element of the Administration s efforts to help all children meet their full potential. The Obama Administration has already taken dramatic steps to raise the bar on Head Start quality, including requiring low performing programs to compete for continued funding, and is revising performance standards to reflect the best available science on early learning and development. The President s Budget includes a new proposal to further increase the impact of Head Start while also helping the working parents of Head Start children by providing enough resources to make sure all children in Head Start benefit from a full school day and full school year (at least six hours a day, 170 days a year), which research shows leads to better outcomes for young children. Investing in Voluntary, Evidence Based Home Visiting: Established in 2010, the Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting program builds on research showing that home visits by a nurse, social worker, or other professional during pregnancy and in the earliest years of life has benefits to parents and to children. These programs have been shown to significantly improve maternal and child health, development, and learning. These effects have proven to be long lasting, with one study showing improved language and math abilities at age 12. Additionally, these programs have led to increases in parental employment and reductions in child maltreatment. To date it has supported more than 1.4 million visits in over 700 communities. The President s Budget would ensure the program does not end when funding is scheduled to expire in March 2015 and expand the program to reach additional families and communities. This proposal is also supported by the increased tobacco tax.

48 CCDF-ACF-PI ATTACHMENT: Timeline of Effective Dates for States and Territories: Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 New CCDF Program Requirements Minimum Quality Spending Requirement (658G(a)(2)(A)) CCDF State & Territory Plan (3-yr) FY CCDF State & Territory Plan (3-yr) FY FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019 FY 2020 FY /01/2014 9/30/2015 Planning/ Implementation 10/01/2015 9/30/ /01/2016 9/30/ /01/2017 9/30/ /01/2018 9/30/ /01/2019 9/30/ /01/2020 9/30/2021 at least 7% at least 7% at least 8% at least 8% at least 9% at least 9% Infant and Toddler Spending Requirement (Additional 3% quality setaside) (658G(a)(2)(B)) Criminal Background Checks (658H(j)) Monitoring of Licensing and Regulatory Requirements (658E(c)(2)(K)) Posting Results of Monitoring and Inspection Reports (Website) (658E(c)(2)(D)) State compliance with Priority for Services (658E(c)(3)(B)(ii)) Planning/Implementation at least 3% at least 3% at least 3% at least 3% at least 3% Planning/Implementation Planning/Implementation Planning/Implementation Planning/Implementation Compliance by 9/30/2017: Not later than the last day of the 2 nd full fiscal year after enactment (states may request an extension of not more than 1 year). Compliance by 11/19/2016: Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment. Compliance by earlier of 11/19/2017 or 1 year after monitoring in place. Compliance by 9/30/2016: Not later than September 30 of the first full fiscal year after the date of enactment (ACF will make an annual determination and report thereafter). The requirement to submit this report applies to ACF. However, prior to submission of this report, states will need to provide information to ACF regarding their compliance with priority for services. Other Requirements Planning/ Implementation If a state or territory provides justification for why it cannot certify compliance with one or more of the requirements of the new law in its FY Plan, ACF may allow the Lead Agency to submit a state-specific timeline for achieving compliance with such provision(s). We expect the need for additional time would be limited to provisions that require significant policy revisions or implementation and that the timeline for implementation would not exceed a 1- year period (i.e., September 30, 2016).

49 Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act of 2014 Plain Language Summary of Statutory Changes HEALTH AND SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR CHILD CARE PROVIDERS Requires States to establish health and safety requirements in 10 different topic areas (e.g., prevention of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), first-aid, and CPR). Child care providers serving children receiving assistance through the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program must receive pre-service and ongoing training on such topics. Requires States to conduct criminal background checks for all child care staff members, including staff members who don t care directly for children but have unsupervised access to children, and specifies disqualifying crimes. Requires States to certify child care providers will comply with child abuse reporting requirements. Requires States to conduct pre-licensure and annual unannounced inspections of licensed CCDF providers and annual inspections of license-exempt CCDF providers. States must establish qualifications and training for licensing inspectors and appropriate inspector-toprovider ratios. Requires States to have standards for CCDF providers regarding group size limits and appropriate childto-provider ratios based on the age of children in child care. Requires emergency preparedness planning and statewide disaster plans for child care. TRANSPARENT CONSUMER AND PROVIDER EDUCATION INFORMATION States must make available by electronic means, easily accessible provider-specific information showing results of monitoring and inspection reports, as well as the number of deaths, serious injuries, and instances of substantiated child abuse that occur in child care settings each year. Requires States to have a website describing processes for licensing and monitoring child care providers, processes for conducting criminal background checks, and offenses that prevent individuals from being child care providers. Funds a national website to disseminate consumer education information that allows search by zip code and referral to local child care providers, as well as a national hotline for reporting child abuse and neglect. FAMILY-FRIENDLY ELIGIBILITY POLICIES Establishes a 12-month eligibility re-determination period for CCDF families, regardless of changes in income (as long as income does not exceed the federal threshold of 85% of State median income) or temporary changes in participation in work, training, or education activities. Allows States the option to terminate assistance prior to re-determination if a parent loses employment, however assistance must be continued for at least 3 months to allow for job search.

50 Eligibility re-determination should not require parents to unduly disrupt their employment. Provides for a graduated phase-out of assistance for families whose income has increased at the time of re-determination, but remains below the federal threshold. Requires procedures for enrollment of homeless children pending completion of documentation, and training and outreach to promote access to services for homeless families. ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF CHILD CARE Phases-in increase in minimum quality set-aside from 4% to 9% over a 5-year period. In addition, requires States to spend minimum of 3% to improve the quality of care for infants and toddlers. Requires States to spend quality funds on at least 1 of 10 specified quality activities, which include developing tiered quality rating systems and supporting statewide resource and referral services. Requires establishment of professional development and training requirements with ongoing annual training and progression to improve knowledge and skills of CCDF providers. Requires States to implement Early Learning and Development Guidelines describing what children should know and be able to do, appropriate from birth to kindergarten entry. Includes provisions on social-emotional health of children, including providing consumer and provider education about policies regarding expulsions of children from early care and education programs and developmental screenings for children at risk of cognitive or developmental delays. TRIBES Tribal set-aside: Establishes a set-aside of not less than 2% (prior law said up to 2%) for Tribes. The law does not indicate the extent to which many of the new provisions apply to Tribes. 1 OTHER PROVISIONS Equal Access: Requires States to conduct a market rate survey, or use an alternative methodology, such as a cost estimation model, and describe how payment rates will be established based on results of the survey or alternative methodology, taking into account cost of providing higher quality services. Supply-building: States must develop strategies for increasing supply and quality of services for children in underserved areas, infants and toddlers, children with disabilities, and children in non-traditional hour care which may include use of grants/contracts and alternative reimbursement. Provider payment practices: States must establish policies that reflect generally accepted payment practices for child care providers, including (to the extent practicable) paying for absence days, and timely reimbursement for child care services. Technical assistance set-aside: Establishes a set-aside of up to ½ of 1% for technical assistance on administering the CCDF program. Research set-aside: Establishes a set-aside of up to ½ of 1% to conduct research and demonstration activities, as well as periodic, external, independent evaluations of the CCDF program. Plan period: Changes CCDF Plan period from 2 to 3-year Plan cycle. Waiver authority: Allows HHS to waive provisions or penalties in the statute for up to 3 years (with the option of a 1 year extension) based on a request from a State identifying duplicative requirements preventing effective delivery of child care services, extraordinary circumstances, or an extended period of time for a State legislature to enact legislation to implement the statute. 1 The Office of Child Care will issue policy guidance on how provisions apply to Tribes after consultation with Tribal Leaders and administrators.