¹402.3015  Subsidized child care program; purpose; fees; contracts.--

(1)  The purpose of the subsidized child care program is to provide quality child care to enhance the development, including language, cognitive, motor, social, and self-help skills of children who are at risk of abuse or neglect and children of low-income families, and to promote financial self-sufficiency and life skills for the families of these children, unless prohibited by federal law. Priority for participation in the subsidized child care program shall be accorded to children under 13 years of age who are:

(a)  Determined to be at risk of abuse, neglect, or exploitation and who are currently clients of the department's Family Safety Program Office;

(b)  Children at risk of welfare dependency, including children of participants in the welfare transition program, children of migrant farmworkers, children of teen parents, and children from other families at risk of welfare dependency due to a family income of less than 100 percent of the federal poverty level;

(c)  Children of working families whose family income is equal to or greater than 100 percent, but does not exceed 150 percent, of the federal poverty level. The department may extend eligibility to children of working families who are currently in subsidized child care and whose family income does not exceed 200 percent of the federal poverty level;

(d)  Children of working families enrolled in the Child Care Executive Partnership Program whose family income does not exceed 200 percent of the federal poverty level; and

(e)  Children of working families who participate in the diversion program to strengthen Florida's families under s. 445.018.

(2)  To the extent resources are available, each child in a family that is eligible may participate in the subsidized child care program.

(3)  Transitional child care shall be available for up to 2 years after eligibility for the WAGES Program ends, at which time child care may continue under paragraph (1)(b) or paragraph (1)(c), as applicable.

(4)  A child who is eligible for child care under this section may continue to participate in the subsidized child care program, if the family's income does not exceed 185 percent of the federal poverty level.

(5)  The department shall establish a fee schedule for participants in the subsidized child care program. The fee schedule must be based on the total income of the family. Each participating family shall contribute to the cost of child care, unless prohibited by federal law.

(6)(a)  Child care services, unless directly operated by a community child care coordinating agency, shall be provided under a service agreement or by voucher, which ensures, to the maximum extent possible, parental choice through flexibility in child care arrangements and payment arrangements. When used, a voucher must bear the name of the beneficiary and the child care provider and, when redeemed, must bear the signature of both the beneficiary and an authorized representative of the child care provider. If it is determined that a child care provider has provided any cash to the beneficiary in return for receiving the voucher, the license for each child care facility operated by the provider shall be immediately revoked and any facility operated by the provider is ineligible for relicensure for 3 years. Whether or not the provider is licensed, the department shall refer the matter to the Department of Law Enforcement for investigation.

(b)  The community child care coordinating agency shall monitor child care providers to ensure that appropriate services are provided.

(c)  Public funds may not be expended to a provider unless the provider agrees to allow the community child care coordinating agency access to fulfill its monitoring requirements.

(d)  A licensed child care facility that provides contracted services under the subsidized child care program must provide at least 10 hours of child care each day, 261 days per year, excluding approved holidays.

(e)  The Division of Risk Management of the Department of Insurance shall provide coverage through the department to the community child care coordinating agencies for the subsidized child care program. The coverage shall be provided from the general liability account of the State Risk Management Trust Fund, and the coverage shall be primary. The coverage is limited to general liability claims arising from the management of the subsidized child care program under a contract with the department and under guidelines established through policy, rule, or law. Coverage shall be limited as provided in ss. 284.38 and 284.385, and the exclusions set forth therein, together with other exclusions that are set forth in the certificate of coverage issued by the trust fund, shall apply. A community child care coordinating agency covered under the general liability account pursuant to this paragraph shall immediately notify the Division of Risk Management of the Department of Insurance of any potential or actual claim.

(7)  To the extent funds are available, the department shall contract for support services for children who are clients of the department's Child Care Services Program Office and who participate in the subsidized child care program. Support services shall include, but need not be limited to, transportation, child development programs, child nutrition services, and parent training and family counseling activities.

(8)  The community child care coordinating agencies shall assist participants in the welfare transition program and former participants of the program who are eligible for subsidized child care in developing cooperative child care arrangements whereby participants support and assist one another in meeting child care needs at minimal cost to the individual participant.

(9)  The central agency for state subsidized child care or the local service district of the Department of Children and Family Services shall cooperate with the local interagency coordinating council as defined in s. 230.2305 in the development of written collaborative agreements with each local school district.

(a)  The central agency shall develop in consultation with the local interagency council a plan for implementing and conducting a child care program. Such plan shall include the tentative budget and measures for maximizing public resources.

(b)  The department shall monitor each subsidized child care provider at least annually to determine compliance with the collaborative agreement facilitated by the local interagency coordinating council. If a provider fails to bring its program into compliance with the agreement or the plan within 3 months after an evaluation citing deficiencies, the department must withhold such administrative funds as have been allocated to the program and which have not yet been released.

(10)  A family that is eligible to participate in the subsidized child care program shall be considered a needy family for purposes of the program funded through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant, to the extent permitted by the appropriation of funds.

(11)  The individual records of children enrolled in subsidized child-care programs are confidential and are exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. For the purposes of this subsection, records include assessment data, health data, records of teacher observations, and identifying data, including the child's social security number. A parent, guardian, or individual acting as a parent in the absence of a parent or guardian, has the right to inspect and review the individual subsidized child-care record of his or her child and to obtain a copy of the record. The school readiness coalition and the Florida Partnership for School Readiness shall have access to individual children's records necessary to carry out their assigned duties under ss. 216.136 and 411.01. This exemption is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2005, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.

History.--s. 33, ch. 90-306; s. 63, ch. 95-228; s. 73, ch. 96-175; s. 11, ch. 96-420; s. 19, ch. 99-4; s. 145, ch. 99-8; ss. 9, 53, ch. 99-228; s. 6, ch. 99-304; s. 6, ch. 99-333; s. 22, ch. 2000-122; s. 59, ch. 2000-139; s. 6, ch. 2000-149; s. 87, ch. 2000-165; s. 14, ch. 2000-253; s. 2, ch. 2000-299.

¹Note.--

A.  Section 162, ch. 2000-165, provides that "[n]otwithstanding any provision of state law, and within the procedures, requirements, and limitations of federal law and regulation, income earned through temporary decennial census employment shall be disregarded when determining eligibility or continued eligibility for participation in programs requiring a financial determination for receipt of benefits, payments, or services, including the WAGES Program under chapter 414, Florida Statutes, subsidized child care under section 402.3015, Florida Statutes, and any other social or economic assistance funded through the state share of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant funds. For purposes of this section, 'temporary decennial census employment' means employment for 120 days or less, within the period January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2000, with the United States Department of Commerce as a census-taker or block canvasser."