AB 116

Bill Subjects

Abstract

(1) Existing law, the Child Care and Development Services Act, administered by the State Department of Social Services, establishes a system of childcare and development services for children up to 13 years of age. Existing law requires the department to contract with local contracting agencies for alternative payment programs for childcare services to be provided throughout the state. Existing law requires an alternative payment program to reimburse a licensed provider for the childcare of a subsidized child based on the rate charged to nonsubsidized families or the rate established by the provider for prospective nonsubsidized families, as specified, and requires a licensed childcare provider to submit to the alternative payment program a copy of the provider's rate sheet listing the rates charged and other specified policies and statements. This bill would provide that a license-exempt childcare provider is not required to submit rate sheets. The bill would, if a childcare provider's reimbursement rate category could be construed as either full-time weekly or full-time monthly, require the alternative payment program, county, or contractor to reimburse the provider either (A) the applicable rate category that most closely corresponds to the rate category listed on the licensed childcare provider's rate sheet, or (B) if the alternative payment program, county, or contractor cannot determine a single applicable rate category from the licensed childcare provider's rate sheet, or if the license-exempt childcare provider does not have a rate sheet on file, the applicable rate category that results in the higher reimbursement. Existing law requires the department, in collaboration with the State Department of Education, to implement a reimbursement system plan that establishes reasonable standards and assigned reimbursement rates, and specifies the reimbursement rate for contractors. Existing law requires the reimbursement rate to be increased by the above-described cost-of-living adjustment. The bill would suspend the annual cost-of-living adjustment for the reimbursement rate for the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years. The bill would state the intent of the Legislature that any adjustment in the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years related to reimbursement for programs funded pursuant to these provisions be subject to a ratified agreement and subject to future legislation, as specified. Under existing law, for purposes of establishing initial income eligibility for services under the act, "income eligible" means that a family's adjusted monthly income is at or below 85% of the state median income, adjusted for family size. Existing regulations provide how to calculate a family's adjusted monthly income for purposes of determining income eligibility and calculating a family fee, and require that when a family's income fluctuates because of migrant, agricultural, or seasonal work, inconsistent or unstable employment; self-employment; or intermittent income, the adjusted monthly income be determined by averaging the total countable income from the preceding 12 months. This bill would codify that regulation, except the bill would require that when a family experiences income fluctuation due to any of those previously mentioned reasons, a family may choose to provide up to the 12 preceding months of income information as necessary for purposes of determining income eligibility or calculating a family fee. The bill would require that the monthly income be determined by averaging the total countable income from at least 2 months, as applicable based on the income provided, to determine income eligibility or calculating a family fee. The bill would authorize the department to implement and administer these provisions by all-county letters, bulletins, or similar written instructions until regulations are adopted. The bill would require the department to adopt regulations no later than July 1, 2026. The bill would specify that these provisions would become operative on January 1, 2024. Existing law provides for state-subsidized childcare programs and childcare for recipients of benefits under the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, which is administered by counties. Existing law establishes the Emergency Child Care Bridge Program for Foster Children, to be implemented at the discretion of each county, for the purpose of stabilizing foster children with families at the time of placement. Existing law authorizes counties to provide payment directly to the family or childcare provider or to contract with a local alternative payment program to distribute vouchers for childcare. This bill would require the department, in collaboration with the State Department of Education, to develop and conduct an alternative methodology, as specified, in order to set reimbursement rates for state-subsidized childcare and development services. The bill would require the department to develop and conduct a survey of market rates for childcare services if the alternative methodology is not approved by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families. The bill would make various conforming changes. This bill would require contracting agencies operating various childcare and development programs and preschool programs to be reimbursed the lesser of 100 percent of the contract maximum reimbursable amount or net reimbursable program costs, as specified, from July 1, 2023, to September 30, 2023, inclusive, pursuant to guidance released by the State Department of Social Services, or the Superintendent of Public Instruction, as specified. (2) Existing law, the Early Education Act, among other things, requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to administer all California state preschool programs, including, but not limited to, part-day and full-day age and developmentally appropriate programs for 3- and 4-year-old children. Existing law, the Child Care and Development Services Act, administered by the State Department of Social Services, establishes a system of childcare and development services for children up to 13 years of age. Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services, in consultation with the State Department of Education, to establish a fee schedule for families using preschool and childcare and development services and requires families who utilize those services to be assessed a family fee that is based on income, certified family need for full-time or part-time care services, and enrollment. Existing law prohibits those family fees from exceeding 10% of the family's monthly income and prohibits family fees from being collected for the 2022–23 fiscal year. This bill would, among other changes to that fee structure, prohibit family fees from being based on the cost of care or amount of subsidy payment. The bill would authorize the forgiveness of family fees that accrued but were uncollected prior to October 1, 2023. The bill would, commencing October 1, 2023, prohibit those family fees from exceeding 1% of the family's monthly income and prohibit a family with an adjusted monthly family income below 75% of the state median family income from being assessed a family fee. The bill would also prohibit a California state preschool program or a childcare provider paid with childcare subsidies from being required to absorb a reduction in pay, as specified, and would prohibit the number of California state preschool program contracted spaces or childcare contracted spaces and vouchers from being reduced because of a reduction in the collection of family fees. The bill would appropriate $56,000,000 from the General Fund to the department for family fees waived or reduced pursuant to those provisions. The Early Education Act requires at least 7.5% of a part-day or full-day California state preschool program contracting agency's funded enrollment to be reserved for children with exceptional needs commencing July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, inclusive, and at least 10% of funded enrollment to be reserved for children with exceptional needs commencing July 1, 2024. This bill would delay the implementation of those requirements by 2 years so that at least 7.5% of funded enrollment would be required to be reserved for children with exceptional needs commencing July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, inclusive, and at least 10% of funded enrollment would be required to be reserved for children with exceptional needs commencing July 1, 2026. Existing law requires each state preschool program applicant or contracting agency to give priority for enrollment for part-day and full-day programs according to a specified priority ranking. Existing law requires the 3rd priority for services to be given to eligible 4-year-old children who are not enrolled in a state-funded transitional kindergarten program and requires the 4th priority to be given to eligible 3-year-old children. This bill would instead require the 3rd priority for services to be given to eligible 3- and 4-year old children who are not enrolled in a state-funded transitional kindergarten program, and would revise the remaining priorities accordingly. Existing law authorizes a provider operating a state preschool program within the attendance boundary of certain public schools where at least 80% of enrolled pupils are eligible for free or reduced-price meals to enroll 3-year-old and 4-year-old children in accordance with the above-described enrollment priorities. Existing law requires the State Department of Education to implement that provision through management bulletins or similar letters of instruction issued on or before December 1, 2022, and requires the department to initiate a rulemaking action to implement that provision on or before December 31, 2023. This bill would extend those dates by one year to December 1, 2023, and December 31, 2024, respectively. Existing law requires the department, in collaboration with the State Department of Social Services, to implement a reimbursement system plan that establishes reasonable standards and assigned reimbursement rates for state preschool programs, as provided. Existing law requires those reimbursement rates to be increased annually by a specified cost-of-living adjustment commencing with the 2022–23 fiscal year. This bill would provide that the cost-of-living adjustment for those reimbursement rates does not apply for the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years. The Early Education Act, among other things, requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to administer all California state preschool programs, including, but not limited to, part-day and full-day age and developmentally appropriate programs for 3- and 4-year-old children. Existing law, the Child Care and Development Services Act, administered by the State Department of Social Services, establishes a system of childcare and development services for children up to 13 years of age. Existing law, until July 1, 2023, authorizes the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Fresno, Marin, Monterey, San Benito, San Diego, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, and Sonoma, as individual pilot projects, to develop and implement an individualized county childcare subsidy plan, as specified. This bill would extend the authorization for those counties to develop and implement individualized county childcare subsidy plans to July 1, 2024. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Fresno, Marin, Monterey, San Benito, San Diego, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, and Sonoma. (3) Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services and the State Department of Education to promote full utilization of childcare and development and preschool funds and match available unused funds with identified service needs, and to attempt to arrange intra-agency adjustments between California state preschool program contracts and general childcare contracts for the same agency and funding allocation. This bill would require the department to promote full utilization of childcare and development program funds and match available unused funds with identified service needs, and to arrange interagency adjustments between different contractors with the same type of contract when both agencies mutually agree to a temporary transfer of funds for the balance of the fiscal year. (4) Existing law, the California Public Records Act, requires state and local agencies to make their records available for public inspection, unless an exemption from disclosure applies. In this regard, the act exempts certain records of state agencies related to activities governed by the Building a Better Early Care and Education System Act, which generally authorizes collective bargaining by family childcare providers, as specified. This bill would update an obsolete cross-reference to the Building a Better Early Care and Education System Act in the California Public Records Act provision described above. (5) Existing law provides for a specified annual funding increase for special education and childcare and development programs if an inflation or cost-of-living adjustment is not otherwise provided for those programs. This bill would suspend the annual cost-of-living adjustment for childcare and development programs for the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years, except as specified. (6) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.