Bill Text: MN HF2799 | 2011-2012 | 87th Legislature | Introduced


Bill Title: Child care provisions modified.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-03-12 - Introduction and first reading, referred to Health and Human Services Finance [HF2799 Detail]

Download: Minnesota-2011-HF2799-Introduced.html

1.1A bill for an act
1.2relating to human services; modifying child care provisions;amending
1.3Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 119B.13, subdivision 3a; Minnesota Statutes
1.42011 Supplement, section 119B.13, subdivision 7.
1.5BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6    Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2010, section 119B.13, subdivision 3a, is amended to
1.7read:
1.8    Subd. 3a. Provider rate differential for accreditation. A family child care
1.9provider or child care center shall be paid a 15 17 percent differential above the maximum
1.10rate established in subdivision 1, up to the actual provider rate, if the provider or center
1.11holds a current early childhood development credential or is accredited. For a family
1.12child care provider, early childhood development credential and accreditation includes
1.13an individual who has earned a child development associate degree, a child development
1.14associate credential, a diploma in child development from a Minnesota state technical
1.15college, or a bachelor's or post baccalaureate degree in early childhood education from
1.16an accredited college or university, or who is accredited by the National Association for
1.17Family Child Care or the Competency Based Training and Assessment Program. For a
1.18child care center, accreditation includes accreditation by the National Association for the
1.19Education of Young Children, the Council on Accreditation, the National Early Childhood
1.20Program Accreditation, the National School-Age Care Association, or the National Head
1.21Start Association Program of Excellence. For Montessori programs, accreditation includes
1.22the American Montessori Society, Association of Montessori International-USA, or the
1.23National Center for Montessori Education.

2.1    Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2011 Supplement, section 119B.13, subdivision 7, is
2.2amended to read:
2.3    Subd. 7. Absent days. (a) Licensed Child care providers and license-exempt centers
2.4must may not be reimbursed for more than ten 25 full-day absent days per child, excluding
2.5holidays, in a fiscal year, or for more than ten consecutive full-day absent days, unless the
2.6child has a documented medical condition that causes more frequent absences. Absences
2.7due to a documented medical condition of a parent or sibling who lives in the same
2.8residence as the child receiving child care assistance do not count against the 25-day absent
2.9day limit in a fiscal year. Documentation of medical conditions must be on the forms and
2.10submitted according to the timelines established by the commissioner. A public health
2.11nurse or school nurse may verify the illness in lieu of a medical practitioner. If a provider
2.12sends a child home early due to a medical reason, including, but not limited to, fever or
2.13contagious illness, the child care center director or lead teacher may verify the illness in
2.14lieu of a medical practitioner. Legal nonlicensed family child care providers must not be
2.15reimbursed for absent days. If a child attends for part of the time authorized to be in care in
2.16a day, but is absent for part of the time authorized to be in care in that same day, the absent
2.17time must will be reimbursed but the time must will not count toward the ten consecutive
2.18or 25 cumulative absent day limit limits. Children in families where at least one parent is
2.19under the age of 21, does not have a high school or general equivalency diploma, and is a
2.20student in a school district or another similar program that provides or arranges for child
2.21care, as well as parenting, social services, career and employment supports, and academic
2.22support to achieve high school graduation, may be exempt from the absent day limits upon
2.23request of the program and approval of the county. If a child attends part of an authorized
2.24day, payment to the provider must be for the full amount of care authorized for that day.
2.25Child care providers must may only be reimbursed for absent days if the provider has a
2.26written policy for child absences and charges all other families in care for similar absences.
2.27    (b) Child care providers must be reimbursed for up to ten federal or state holidays
2.28or designated holidays per year when the provider charges all families for these days
2.29and the holiday or designated holiday falls on a day when the child is authorized to be
2.30in attendance. Parents may substitute other cultural or religious holidays for the ten
2.31recognized state and federal holidays. Holidays do not count toward the ten consecutive
2.32or 25 cumulative absent day limit limits.
2.33    (c) A family or child care provider must may not be assessed an overpayment for an
2.34absent day payment unless (1) there was an error in the amount of care authorized for the
2.35family, (2) all of the allowed full-day absent payments for the child have been paid, or (3)
2.36the family or provider did not timely report a change as required under law.
3.1    (d) The provider and family must receive notification of the number of absent days
3.2used upon initial provider authorization for a family and when the family has used 15
3.3cumulative absent days. Upon statewide implementation of the Minnesota Electronic
3.4Child Care System, the provider and family shall receive notification of the number of
3.5absent days used upon initial provider authorization for a family and ongoing notification
3.6of the number of absent days used as of the date of the notification.
3.7(e) A county may pay for more absent days than the statewide absent day policy
3.8established under this subdivision if current market practice in the county justifies payment
3.9for those additional days. County policies for payment of absent days in excess of the
3.10statewide absent day policy and justification for these county policies must be included in
3.11the county's child care fund plan under section 119B.08, subdivision 3.
3.12EFFECTIVE DATE.This section is effective January 1, 2013.
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