WSR 17-23-057 PERMANENT RULES DEPARTMENT OF EARLY LEARNING [Filed November 9, 2017, 5:55 p.m., effective December 10, 2017] Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing. Purpose: Standardize working connections child care authorization amounts for all participating families who need full- and part-time care and are using licensed child care providers or license-exempt/relative (family, friend, or neighbor) providers. Permanent rules are adopted in conjunction with final rules adopted under WSR 17-23-017. Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 170-290-0190. Adopted under notice filed as WSR 17-20-111 on October 4, 2017. Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0. Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0. Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0. Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 1, Repealed 0. Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0. Date Adopted: November 9, 2017. Heather Moss Director
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 17-18-009, filed 8/24/17, effective 9/24/17)
WAC 170-290-0190 WCCC ((authorized and additional payments—Determining units of care)) benefit calculations.
(((1) DSHS will authorize the following:
(a) Full-day child care to licensed or certified facilities and DEL contracted seasonal day camps when a consumer's children need care between five and ten hours per day;
(b) Half-day child care to licensed or certified facilities and DEL contracted seasonal day camps when a consumer's children need care for less than five hours per day;
(c) Hourly child care for in-home/relative child care;
(d) Full-time care when the consumer participates in one hundred ten hours or more of approved activities per calendar month based on the consumer's approved activity schedule. Full-time care means the following:
(i) For licensed care or certified facilities, twenty-three full-day units if the child needs five or more hours of care per day, or thirty half-day units if the child needs fewer than five hours of care per day; and
(ii) Two hundred thirty hours for in-home/relative child care if the child needs five or more hours of care per day or one hundred fifteen hours for in-home/relative child care if the child needs fewer than five hours of care per day. Supervisor approval is required for DSHS to authorize more than two hundred thirty hours of in-home/relative child care in a calendar month for a single child.
(e) A registration fee (under WAC 170-290-0245);
(f) A field trip fee (under WAC 170-290-0247);
(g) Special needs care when the child has a documented need for a higher level of care (under WAC 170-290-0220, 170-290-0225, 170-290-0230, and 170-290-0235); and
(h) A nonstandard hours bonus under WAC 170-290-0249.
(2) Beginning September 1, 2016, and applicable to school-age children, DSHS will authorize and pay for child care as follows:
(a) DSHS will automatically increase half-day authorizations to full-day authorizations beginning the month of June when the child needs full-day care;
(b) DSHS will automatically decrease full-day authorizations to half-day authorizations beginning the month of September unless the child continues to need full-day care during the school year until the following June. If the consumer's schedule has changed and more care is needed, the consumer must request an increase, and DSHS will verify the need for increased care. DSHS will send the consumer notification of the decrease as stated in WAC 170-290-0025; and
(c) Beginning October 1, 2017, DSHS will authorize one hundred fifteen hours of child care for the in-home/relative provider and DSHS will authorize additional contingency hours of care needed for the school-aged child by the in-home/relative provider when the child needs full-time care. Contingency hours will have a variable monthly limit and be available for each month of the calendar year. Supervisor approval is required when a school-aged child needs more than two hundred thirty hours of in-home/relative child care a month.
(3) DSHS may authorize up to the provider's private pay rate if:
(a) The parent is a WorkFirst participant; and
(b) Appropriate child care, at the state rate, is not available within a reasonable distance from the approved activity site.
"Appropriate" means licensed or certified child care under WAC 170-290-0125, or an approved in-home/relative provider under WAC 170-290-0130.
"Reasonable distance" is determined by comparing what other local families must travel to access appropriate child care.
(4) DSHS authorizes overtime care if:
(a) More than ten hours of care is provided per day (up to a maximum of sixteen hours a day); and
(b) The provider's written policy is to charge all families for these hours of care in excess of ten hours per day.
(5) In-home/relative providers who are paid child care subsidies to care for children receiving WCCC benefits cannot receive those benefits for their own children during the hours in which they provide subsidized child care.)) (1) The amount of care a consumer may receive is determined by DSHS at application or reapplication. The consumer does not need to be in approved activities or a reported activity schedule, except at application or reapplication. Once the care is authorized, the amount will not be reduced during the eligibility period unless:
(a) The consumer requests the reduction;
(b) The care is for a school-aged child as described in subsection (3) of this section; and
(c) Incorrect information was given at application or reapplication according to WAC 170-290-0030.
(2) To determine the amount of weekly hours of care needed, DSHS will review:
(a) The consumer's participation in approved activities per WAC 170-290-0040, 170-290-0045, 170-290-0050, and 170-290-0055;
(b) The number of hours the child attends school, including home school, and reduce the amount of care;
(c) In a two parent household, the days and times the activities overlap, and only authorize care during those times;
(d) The parent, in a two parent household, who is not able to care for the child, as defined in WAC 170-290-0020, and exclude the activity requirements; and
(e) When a consumer requests and verifies the need for increased care, DSHS will increase the care for the remainder of the eligibility period.
(3) Determining full-time care for a family using licensed providers:
(a) Twenty-three full-day units per month will be authorized for one hundred ten hours of activity or more each month when the child needs care five or more hours per day;
(b) Thirty half-day units per month will be authorized for one hundred ten hours of activity or more each month when the child needs care less than five hours per day;
(c) Thirty half-day units per month will be authorized during the school year for a school-aged child who needs care less than five hours per day;
(d) Forty-six half-day units will be authorized during the months of July and August for a school-aged child who needs five or more hours of care;
(e) Twenty-three full-day units will be authorized during the school year for a school-aged child who needs care five or more hours per day;
(f) Supervisor approval is required for additional days of care that exceeds twenty-three full days or thirty half days; and
(g) Care cannot exceed sixteen hours per day, per child.
(4) Determining full-time care for a family using in-home/relative providers (family, friend and neighbors).
(a) Two hundred thirty hours of care will be authorized for one hundred ten hours of activity or more each month when the child needs care five or more hours per day;
(b) One hundred fifteen hours of care will be authorized for one hundred ten hours of activity or more each month when the child needs care less than five hours per day;
(c) One hundred fifteen hours of care will be authorized during the school year for a school-aged child who needs care less than five hours per day and the provider will be authorized contingency hours each month, up to a maximum of two hundred thirty hours;
(d) Two hundred thirty hours of care will be authorized during the school year for a school-aged child who needs care five or more hours in a day;
(e) Supervisor approval is required for hours of care that exceed two hundred thirty hours; and
(f) Care cannot exceed sixteen hours per day, per child.
(5) Determining part-time care for a family using licensed providers and the activity is less than one hundred ten hours per month.
(a) A full-day unit will be authorized for each day of care that exceeds five hours;
(b) A half-day unit will be authorized for each day of care that is less than five hours; and
(c) A half-day unit will be authorized for each day of care for a school-aged child, not to exceed thirty half days.
(6) Determining part-time care for a family using in-home/relative providers (family, friend and neighbors).
(a) Under the provisions of subsection (2) of this section, DSHS will authorize the number of hours of care needed per month when the activity is less than one hundred ten hours per month; and
(b) When the provider claims contingency hours, the total number of authorized hours and contingency hours claimed cannot exceed two hundred thirty hours per month.
(7) DSHS determines the allocation of hours or units for families with multiple providers based upon the information received from the parent.
(8) DSHS may authorize more than the state rate and up to the provider's private pay rate if:
(a) The parent is a WorkFirst participant; and
(b) Appropriate child care, at the state rate, is not available within a reasonable distance from the approved activity site. "Appropriate" means licensed or certified child care under WAC 170-290-0125, or an approved in-home/relative provider under WAC 170-290-0130. "Reasonable distance" is determined by comparing distances other local families must travel to access appropriate child care.
(9) Other fees DSHS may authorize to a provider are:
(a) Registration fees;
(b) Field trip fees;
(c) Nonstandard hours bonus;
(d) Overtime care to a licensed provider who has a written policy to charge all families, when care is expected to exceed ten hours in a day; and
(e) Special needs rates for a child.
(10) In-home/relative providers who are paid child care subsidies to care for children receiving WCCC benefits cannot receive those benefits for their own children during the hours in which they provide subsidized child care.
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