November 17, 2020 Provide Your Feedback: Subsidized Child Care Eligibility The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services and the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) are accepting public comments through December 14, 2020 for proposed changes to the current subsidized child care eligibility regulations. About Proposed changes to the subsidized child care eligibility regulations at 55 Pa. Code Chapter 3041 might impact families, children, and early childhood education providers. The proposed changes include, but are not limited to, the following: expanded eligibility period of 12 months; expanded eligibility to cover hours the parent or caretaker requires sleep following completion of overnight work shift; no changes to the amounts of subsidy and co-payment for the duration of the eligibility period, unless to the family’s benefit; abolished the requirement for the parent or caretaker to pay an advanced co-pay prior to enrollment; children who turn 13 during the eligibility period will continue to receive the subsidy until the eligibility period ends; codifying payment practices permitting tiered reimbursement for providers who voluntarily exceed the basic health and safety requirements; codifying payment practices based on enrollment and not attendance, to include increasing the number of permitted absences from 25 to 50 per fiscal year; after five consecutive days absent, the child maintains eligibility, but the enrollment is suspended until the child returns to care; and establishment of waiver provisions and periods of presumptive eligibility for particular populations, including victims of domestic violence and families experiencing homelessness. How To Submit A Comment All public comments must be submitted in writing by December 14, 2020. All comments, suggestions, or objections should reference the regulation number, section, and subsection. Comments can be submitted using the following methods: email your comments to RA-ocdsubchildcare@pa.gov; fax your comments to 717.214.6575; or mail your comments to:Michael Ordonez Office of Child Development and Early Learning 333 Market Street, 6th Floor Harrisburg, PA 17126 If you would like to receive a response, please include your contact information when submitting. More Information For information about the current regulations, visit the Pennsylvania Code website. To view the latest issue, read Volume 50 Number 46. Share this flyer with your network.
October 18, 2019 ACF Seeks Input On Improving Quality Child Care Access On October 2, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) posted a Request for Information (RFI) on improving access to affordable, high-quality child care in the United States. About ACF is focused on finding innovative solutions to improve working families’ access to affordable, high quality child care, as well as investigating how access to child care affects America’s workforce, present, and future. Child care is one of the biggest expenses a family faces and can be a barrier to work. The average cost of center-based infant child care in 28 states is more than college tuition. At the same time, there is concern about the quality of child care and ensuring that child care settings are a place of education that promote and enhance child and youth development and well-being. High-quality child care is a critical investment that pays off now, for parents by enabling them to work, and later, by supporting children’s development and success in school and life. This request for information seeks public comment on innovative ways to address the affordability and access crisis of child care in the U.S., without compromising on quality. Information collected through this RFI may be used by ACF in the development of future rulemaking and technical assistance, the formation of legislative proposals and research agenda, and/or strategic planning. To learn more, visit the RFI page. Intended Audience and Stakeholders AFI is looking to receive input from a wide range of stakeholders, including, but not limited to, parents who use child care; parents of children with disabilities; small child care businesses; employers; state and local chambers of commerce; foundations; faith-based and other community organizations; family child care networks; child care resource and referral agencies; universities and other institutions of higher education; child care workforce development organizations, etc. RFI Topics Building Supply of Child Care Improving Child Care Regulations Cultivating the Child Care Workforce Developing Better Child Care Business Models Transforming Financing of Child Care and Early Education Programs Submit Your Comment To submit a comment, visit the RFI page. All comments must be submitted by December 2, 2019. *Information provided by the Administration of Children and Families
October 18, 2018 Comment On Proposed Changes To Child Care Regulations The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) announced that the proposed changes to the Child Care Regulations at 55 Pa. Code, Chapters 3270, 3280 and 3290 are now available for review. The proposed changes can be viewed in the PA Bulletin. All public comments must be submitted in writing by the closing date of the public comment period on November 13, 2018. All comments, suggestions or objections must reference the Regulation Chapter, Number, Section, and Subsection. Submit Via email: RA-PWCCRegChanges@pa.gov Via fax: 717-787-1529 Via mail: Tamula Ferguson Bureau of Certification Services Office of Development and Early Learning Department of Human Services 333 Market Street, 6th Floor Harrisburg, PA 17105 Persons with a disability who require an auxiliary aid or service may submit comments using the AT&T Relay Service at 1-800-654-5984 (TDD users) or 1-800-654-5988 (voice users). A public hearing will be held in Harrisburg at PaTTAN Harrisburg (6340 Flank Drive, Harrisburg, PA 17112) on November 2, 2018. The hearing begins at 10:00 AM. Registration is required and can be completed on the PA Department of Human Services site. Current regulations can be viewed on the PA Department of Human Services site. View this announcement on the PA Keys website. View a flyer of this announcement. (PDF)
