1st Engrossment - 88th Legislature (2013 - 2014) Posted on 03/17/2014 03:25pm
A bill for an act
relating to education finance; increasing funding for the early learning
scholarship program; extending neighborhood achievement zone services; fully
funding the basic sliding fee child care assistance program; modifying provider
reimbursement rates; expanding the home visiting program; appropriating
money; amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 119B.02, subdivisions 1,
2; 119B.03, subdivision 9; 119B.035, subdivisions 1, 4; 119B.05, subdivision
5; 119B.08, subdivision 3; 119B.09, subdivision 4a; 119B.231, subdivision
5; 256.017, subdivision 9; Minnesota Statutes 2013 Supplement, sections
119B.011, subdivision 19b; 119B.05, subdivision 1; 124D.165; Laws 2013,
chapter 116, article 8, section 5, subdivision 8; repealing Minnesota Statutes
2012, sections 119B.011, subdivision 20a; 119B.03, subdivisions 1, 2, 5, 6,
6a, 6b, 8; 119B.09, subdivision 3; Minnesota Statutes 2013 Supplement,
section 119B.03, subdivision 4; Minnesota Rules, parts 3400.0020, subpart 8;
3400.0030; 3400.0060, subparts 2, 4, 6, 6a, 7.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Minnesota Statutes 2013 Supplement, section 119B.011, subdivision 19b,
is amended to read:
"Student parent" means a person who is:
(1) under 21 years of age and has a child;
(2) pursuing a high school or general equivalency diploma;new text begin and
new text end
deleted text begin
(3) residing within a county that has a basic sliding fee waiting list under section
119B.03, subdivision 4; and
deleted text end
deleted text begin (4)deleted text end new text begin (3)new text end not an MFIP participant.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.02, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
The commissioner shall develop standards
for county and human services boards to provide child care services to enable eligible
families to participate in employment, training, or education programs. deleted text begin Within the limits
of available appropriations,deleted text end The commissioner shall distribute money to counties to
reduce the costs of child care for eligible families. The commissioner shall adopt rules to
govern the program in accordance with this section. The rules must establish a sliding
schedule of fees for parents receiving child care services. The rules shall provide that
funds received as a lump-sum payment of child support arrearages shall not be counted
as income to a family in the month received but shall be prorated over the 12 months
following receipt and added to the family income during those months. The commissioner
shall maximize the use of federal money under title I and title IV of Public Law 104-193,
the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, and
other programs that provide federal or state reimbursement for child care services for
low-income families who are in education, training, job search, or other activities allowed
under those programs. Money appropriated under this section must be coordinated with
the programs that provide federal reimbursement for child care services to accomplish
this purpose. deleted text begin Federal reimbursement obtained must be allocated to the county that spent
money for child care that is federally reimbursable under programs that provide federal
reimbursement for child care services.deleted text end The deleted text begin countiesdeleted text end new text begin commissionernew text end shall use the federal
money to expand child care services. The commissioner may adopt rules under chapter 14
to implement and coordinate federal program requirements.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.02, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
The commissioner may enter into
contractual agreements with a federally recognized Indian tribe with a reservation in
Minnesota to carry out the responsibilities of county human service agencies to the extent
necessary for the tribe to operate child care assistance programs under sections 119B.03 and
119B.05. An agreement may allow for the tribe to be reimbursed for child care assistance
services provided under deleted text begin sectiondeleted text end new text begin sections 119B.03 andnew text end 119B.05. The commissioner shall
consult with the affected county or counties in the contractual agreement negotiations, if
the county or counties wish to be included, in order to avoid the duplication of county
and tribal child care services. deleted text begin Funding to support services under section 119B.03 may be
transferred to the federally recognized Indian tribe with a reservation in Minnesota from
allocations available to counties in which reservation boundaries lie. When funding is
transferred under section 119B.03, the amount shall be commensurate to estimates of the
proportion of reservation residents with characteristics identified in section 119B.03,
subdivision 6, to the total population of county residents with those same characteristics.
deleted text end
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.03, subdivision 9, is amended to read:
deleted text begin
(a) The commissioner shall establish a pool of up to five
percent of the annual appropriation for the basic sliding fee program to provide continuous
child care assistance for eligible families who move between Minnesota counties. At the
end of each allocation period, any unspent funds in the portability pool must be used for
assistance under the basic sliding fee program. If expenditures from the portability pool
exceed the amount of money available, the reallocation pool must be reduced to cover
these shortages.
deleted text end
deleted text begin (b) To be eligible for portable basic sliding fee assistance, a family that has moved
from a county in which itdeleted text end new text begin (a) A family receiving child care assistance under the child care
fund that has moved from a county in which the familynew text end was receiving deleted text begin basic sliding fee
deleted text end new text begin child carenew text end assistance to deleted text begin adeleted text end new text begin anothernew text end county deleted text begin with a waiting list for the basic sliding fee program
deleted text end mustnew text begin be admitted into the receiving county's child care assistance program if the familynew text end :
(1) deleted text begin meetdeleted text end new text begin meetsnew text end the income and eligibility guidelines for the basic sliding fee
program; and
(2) deleted text begin notifydeleted text end new text begin notifiesnew text end the new county of residence within 60 days of moving and deleted text begin submit
deleted text end new text begin submitsnew text end information to the new county of residence to verify eligibility for the basic
sliding fee program.
deleted text begin (c)deleted text end new text begin (b)new text end The receiving county mustdeleted text begin :
deleted text end
deleted text begin (1)deleted text end accept administrative responsibility deleted text begin for applicants for portable basic sliding fee
assistancedeleted text end at the end of the two months of assistance under the Unitary Residency Actdeleted text begin ;deleted text end new text begin .
new text end
deleted text begin
(2) continue basic sliding fee assistance for the lesser of six months or until the
family is able to receive assistance under the county's regular basic sliding program; and
deleted text end
deleted text begin
(3) notify the commissioner through the quarterly reporting process of any family
that meets the criteria of the portable basic sliding fee assistance pool.
deleted text end
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.035, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
A family in which a parent provides care for the
family's infant child may receive a subsidy in lieu of assistance if the family is eligible for
or is receiving assistance under the basic sliding fee program. An eligible family must
meet the eligibility factors under section 119B.09, except as provided in subdivision 4,
and the requirements of this section. Subject to federal match and maintenance of effort
requirements for the child care and development fund, deleted text begin and up to available appropriations,
deleted text end the commissioner shall provide assistance under the at-home infant child care program
and for administrative costs associated with the program. At the end of a fiscal year, the
commissioner may carry forward any unspent funds under this section to the next fiscal
year within the same biennium for assistance under the basic sliding fee program.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.035, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
(a) A family is limited to a lifetime total of 12 months of
assistance under subdivision 2. The maximum rate of assistance is equal to 68 percent
of the rate established under section 119B.13 for care of infants in licensed family child
care in the applicant's county of residence.
(b) A participating family must report income and other family changes as specified
in the county's plan under section 119B.08, subdivision 3.
(c) deleted text begin Persons who are admitted to the at-home infant child care program retain their
position in any basic sliding fee program. Persons leaving the at-home infant child care
program reenter the basic sliding fee program at the position they would have occupied.
deleted text end
deleted text begin (d)deleted text end Assistance under this section does not establish an employer-employee
relationship between any member of the assisted family and the county or state.
Minnesota Statutes 2013 Supplement, section 119B.05, subdivision 1, is
amended to read:
Families eligible for child care assistance
under the MFIP child care program are:
(1) MFIP participants who are employed or in job search and meet the requirements
of section 119B.10;
(2) persons who are members of transition year families under section 119B.011,
subdivision 20, and meet the requirements of section 119B.10;
(3) families who are participating in employment orientation or job search, or
other employment or training activities that are included in an approved employability
development plan under section 256J.95;
(4) MFIP families who are participating in work job search, job support,
employment, or training activities as required in their employment plan, or in appeals,
hearings, assessments, or orientations according to chapter 256J;
(5) MFIP families who are participating in social services activities under chapter
256J as required in their employment plan approved according to chapter 256J;
(6) families who are participating in services or activities that are included in an
approved family stabilization plan under section 256J.575;
(7) families who are participating in programs as required in tribal contracts under
section 119B.02, subdivision 2, or 256.01, subdivision 2;new text begin and
new text end
deleted text begin
(8) families who are participating in the transition year extension under section
119B.011, subdivision 20a; and
deleted text end
deleted text begin (9)deleted text end new text begin (8)new text end student parents as defined under section 119B.011, subdivision 19b.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.05, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
Countiesnew text begin and the statenew text end shall maximize their
federal reimbursement under federal reimbursement programs for money spent for persons
eligible under this chapter. The commissioner shall allocate any federal earnings to the
county to be used to expand child care services under this chapter.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.08, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
The county and designated administering agency
shall submit a biennial child care fund plan to the commissioner. The commissioner shall
establish the dates by which the county must submit the plans. The plan shall include:
(1) a description of strategies to coordinate and maximize public and private
community resources, including school districts, health care facilities, government
agencies, neighborhood organizations, and other resources knowledgeable in early
childhood development, in particular to coordinate child care assistance with existing
community-based programs and service providers including child care resource and
referral programs, early childhood family education, school readiness, Head Start, local
interagency early intervention committees, special education services, early childhood
screening, and other early childhood care and education services and programs to the extent
possible, to foster collaboration among agencies and other community-based programs that
provide flexible, family-focused services to families with young children and to facilitate
transition into kindergarten. The county must describe a method by which to share
information, responsibility, and accountability among service and program providers;
(2) a description of procedures and methods to be used to make copies of the
proposed state plan reasonably available to the public, including members of the public
particularly interested in child care policies such as parents, child care providers, culturally
specific service organizations, child care resource and referral programs, interagency
early intervention committees, potential collaborative partners and agencies involved in
the provision of care and education to young children, and allowing sufficient time for
public review and comment; and
(3) information as requested by the department to ensure compliance with the child
care fund statutes and rules promulgated by the commissioner.
The commissioner shall notify counties within 90 days of the date the plan is
submitted whether the plan is approved or the corrections or information needed to approve
the plan. The commissioner shall withhold deleted text begin a county's allocation until it has an approved
plan. Plans not approved by the end of the second quarter after the plan is due may result
in a 25 percent reduction in allocation. Plans not approved by the end of the third quarter
after the plan is due may result in a 100 percent reduction in the allocation to the county
deleted text end new text begin payments to a county until it has an approved plannew text end . Counties are to maintain services despite
any deleted text begin reduction in their allocationdeleted text end new text begin withholding of paymentsnew text end due to plans not being approved.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.09, subdivision 4a, is amended to read:
Counties must reserve a
family's position under the child care assistance fund if a family has been receiving child
care assistance but is temporarily ineligible for assistance due to increased income from
active military service. Activated military personnel may be temporarily ineligible until
deactivation. deleted text begin A county must reserve a military family's position on the basic sliding fee
waiting list under the child care assistance fund if a family is approved to receive child care
assistance and reaches the top of the waiting list but is temporarily ineligible for assistance.
deleted text end
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.231, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
(a) The following provisions in chapter 119B
must be waived or modified for families receiving services under this section.
(b) Notwithstanding section 119B.13, subdivisions 1 and 1a, maximum weekly rates
under this section are 125 percent of the existing maximum weekly rate for like-care.
Providers eligible for a differential rate under section 119B.13, subdivision 3a, remain
eligible for the differential above the rate identified in this section. Only care for children
who have not yet entered kindergarten may be paid at the maximum rate under this
section. The provider's charge for service provided through an SRSA may not exceed the
rate that the provider charges a private-pay family for like-care arrangements.
(c) A family or child care provider may not be assessed an overpayment for care
provided through an SRSA unless:
(1) there was an error in the amount of care authorized for the family; or
(2) the family or provider did not timely report a change as required under the law.
(d) Care provided through an SRSA is authorized on a weekly basis.
(e) deleted text begin Funds appropriated under this section to serve families eligible under section
119B.03 are not allocated through the basic sliding fee formula under section 119B.03.
deleted text end Funds appropriated under this section are used to offset increased costs when payments
are made under SRSA's.
(f) Notwithstanding section 119B.09, subdivision 6, the maximum amount of child
care assistance that may be authorized for a child receiving care through an SRSA in a
two-week period is 160 hours per child.
(g) Effective May 23, 2008, absent day payment limits under section 119B.13,
subdivision 7, do not apply to children for care paid through SRSA's provided the family
remains eligible under subdivision 3.
Minnesota Statutes 2013 Supplement, section 124D.165, is amended to read:
There is established an early learning
scholarships program in order to increase access to high-quality early childhood programs
for children ages three to five.
new text begin
(a) The terms defined in this subdivision apply to this section.
new text end
new text begin
(b) "Director" means the director of the Office of Early Learning.
new text end
new text begin
(c) "Eligible program" means a Head Start program under section 119A.50, school
readiness program under section 124D.15, or other school district child-based program
designed to provide early education services to children not yet in kindergarten, licensed
center-based child care program under chapter 245A, or licensed family child care
program under chapter 245A, or other program providing early learning opportunities.
new text end
new text begin
(d) "Income" has the meaning given in section 119B.011, subdivision 15.
new text end
new text begin
(e) "Parent" means the parent or legal guardian of a child.
new text end
(a) For a family to receive an early childhood education
scholarship, deleted text begin parents or guardiansdeleted text end new text begin a parentnew text end must meet the following eligibility requirements:
(1) have a child deleted text begin three or fourdeleted text end new text begin under five new text end years of age on September 1 of the current
year, who has not yet started kindergarten; and
(2) have income equal to or less than 185 percent of federal poverty level income
in the current calendar yeardeleted text begin , or be able to document their child's current participation indeleted text end new text begin .
A parent may document family income as required by the director. However, a parent
whose child or family participates in another public eligibility program includingnew text end the
free and reduced-price lunch program or child and adult care food program, National
School Lunch Act, United States Code, title 42, sections 1751 and 1766; Head Start
under the federal Improving Head Start for School Readiness Act of 2007; Minnesota
family investment program under chapter 256J; child care assistance programs under
chapter 119B; the supplemental nutrition assistance program; or placement in foster care
under section 260C.212new text begin , is automatically qualified and no further information to verify
income is necessarynew text end .
(b) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this section, a parent under age 21 who
is pursuing a high school or general education equivalency diploma is eligible for an early
learning scholarship if the parent has a child age zero to five years old and meets the
income eligibility guidelines in this subdivision.
(c) Any siblings between the ages zero to five years old of a child who has been
awarded a scholarship under this section must be awarded a scholarship upon request,
provided the sibling attends the same program.
(d) A child who has received a scholarship under this section must continue to receive
a scholarship each year until that child is eligible for kindergarten under section 120A.20.
(e) Early learning scholarships may not be counted as earned income for the purposes
of medical assistance under chapter 256B, MinnesotaCare under chapter 256L, Minnesota
family investment program under chapter 256J, child care assistance programs under
chapter 119B, or Head Start under the federal Improving Head Start for School Readiness
Act of 2007.new text begin Scholarships paid to providers on behalf of an eligible parent must not be
considered child care funds for purposes of child care assistance under chapter 119B.
new text end
new text begin
(a) The director shall prioritize
applications according to this subdivision and may establish a range of scholarship
amounts taking into account the child's level of need and geographic location.
new text end
new text begin
(b) The director shall prioritize scholarship amounts to recipients based on the
following characteristics:
new text end
new text begin
(1) whether the child's family lives in a neighborhood transformation zone;
new text end
new text begin
(2) the severity of poverty facing the family;
new text end
new text begin
(3) the level of poverty and concentration of poverty among racial and ethnic groups
for the census tract where the family lives;
new text end
new text begin
(4) the level of teen pregnancies in the area where the family lives;
new text end
new text begin
(5) the achievement gap facing families in the area where the family lives;
new text end
new text begin
(6) the number of single family households in the census tract where the family lives;
new text end
new text begin
(7) the number of inmates in Minnesota's prisons convicted of a level 1 offense, as
defined by the National Crime Information Center, with home addresses in the census tract
or other region as determined by the director;
new text end
new text begin
(8) the number of teenage mothers living in the census tract or other region as
determined by the director; and
new text end
new text begin
(9) other risk families as determined by the director.
new text end
new text begin
The director annually shall determine the
maximum scholarship amounts based on the results of the rate survey conducted under
chapter 119B, and shall establish a range of scholarship amounts taking into account the
child's level of need taking into account the risk factors listed in subdivision 2a, whether
the child is in a home where the court has found the child in need of protection or services,
and geographic location. The director shall establish a scholarship amount schedule
according to the eligible program's rating. The scholarship amounts may be designed to
be layered around other assistance programs available to that child. The director shall
not consider local funds allocated to support an early learning program when layering
scholarships around other assistance programs. Eligible providers must be notified of the
scholarship allocations available in the provider's geographic location.
new text end
(a) The deleted text begin commissionerdeleted text end new text begin directornew text end shall establish application
timelines and determine the schedule for awarding scholarships that meets operational
needs of eligible families and programs. The deleted text begin commissionerdeleted text end new text begin directornew text end may prioritize
applications on factors including family income, geographic location, and whether the
child's family is on a waiting list for a publicly funded program providing early education
or child care services.
(b) deleted text begin Scholarships may be awarded up to $5,000 for each eligible child per yeardeleted text end new text begin By
March 15, eligible programs may notify the director of the number of scholarship-eligible
children who are eligible under subdivision 2, and who have applied for enrollment in that
program. To facilitate enrollment planning, by April 15, the director shall notify eligible
programs that have provided enrollment information under this paragraph of the scholarship
status of each applicant. To the extent practicable, and taking into account family mobility,
the scholarships must be awarded to eligible recipients beginning April 15 of each year for
a child's participation in a program starting in July, August, or September of that yearnew text end .
(c) A four-star rated program that has children eligible for a scholarship enrolled in
or on a waiting list for a program beginning in July, August, or September may notify the
deleted text begin commissionerdeleted text end new text begin directornew text end , in the form and manner prescribed by the deleted text begin commissionerdeleted text end new text begin directornew text end ,
each year of the program's desire to enhance program services or to serve more children
than current funding provides. The deleted text begin commissionerdeleted text end new text begin directornew text end may designate a predetermined
number of scholarship slots for that program and notify the program of that number.
(d) A scholarship is awarded for a 12-month period. If the scholarship recipient has
not been accepted and subsequently enrolled in a rated program within ten months of the
awarding of the scholarship, the scholarship cancels and the recipient must reapply in
order to be eligible for another scholarship. A child may not be awarded more than one
scholarship in a 12-month period.
(e) A child who receives a scholarship who has not completed development
screening under sections 121A.16 to 121A.19 must complete that screening within 90
days of first attending an eligible program.
(a) In order to be eligible to accept
an early childhood education scholarship, a program must:
(1) participate in the quality rating and improvement system under section
124D.142; and
(2) beginning July 1, 2016, have a three- or four-star rating in the quality rating
and improvement system.
(b) Any program accepting scholarships must use the revenue to supplement and not
supplant federal funding.
The deleted text begin commissionerdeleted text end new text begin directornew text end shall contract with an
independent contractor to evaluate the early learning scholarship program. The evaluation
must include recommendations regarding the appropriate scholarship amount, efficiency,
and effectiveness of the administration, and impact on kindergarten readiness.
Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 256.017, subdivision 9, is amended to read:
Quality
control case penalty and administrative penalty amounts shall be disallowed or withheld
from the next regular reimbursement made to the county agency for state and federal
benefit reimbursements and federal administrative reimbursements for all programs
covered in this section, according to procedures established in statute, but shall not be
imposed sooner than 30 calendar days from the date of written notice of such penalties.
Except for penalties withheld under the child care assistance program, all penalties
must be deposited in the county incentive fund provided in section 256.018. Penalties
withheld under the child care assistance program shall be reallocated to counties deleted text begin using the
allocation formula under section 119B.03, subdivision 5deleted text end . All penalties must be imposed
according to this provision until a decision is made regarding the status of a written
exception. Penalties must be returned to county agencies when a review of a written
exception results in a decision in their favor.
Laws 2013, chapter 116, article 8, section 5, subdivision 8, is amended to read:
For transfer to the Office of
Early Learning for early learning scholarships under Minnesota Statutes, section 124D.165:
$ |
23,000,000 |
..... |
2014 |
|
$ |
deleted text begin
23,000,000 deleted text end new text begin 273,000,000 new text end |
..... |
2015 |
new text begin For fiscal year 2015 and later, the director shall allocate $100,000,000 for
scholarships for children who are under the age of four. new text end Up to $950,000 each year is for
administration of this program.
Any balance in the first year does not cancel but is available in the second year.
new text begin
The state obligation for the basic sliding fee child care assistance program under
Minnesota Statutes, section 119B.03, must be included in the Minnesota Management
and Budget February and November forecast of state revenues and expenditures under
Minnesota Statutes, section 16A.103, beginning with the November 2014 forecast.
new text end
new text begin
$80,000,000 in fiscal year 2015 is appropriated from the general fund to the
commissioner of human services to fully fund the basic sliding fee child care assistance
program. This appropriation is in addition to any other appropriation for this purpose.
new text end
new text begin
$....... in fiscal year 2015 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner
of health to expand high-quality home visiting focusing on the youngest children living in
the highest risk families receiving assistance through the Minnesota family investment
program under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 256J. The commissioner of health shall consult
with the commissioner of human services on the administration of this program.
new text end
new text begin
(a) $....... in fiscal year 2015 is appropriated from the general fund to the
commissioner of education for distribution to the Office of Early Learning.
new text end
new text begin
(b) Up to $....... of the appropriation in paragraph (a) is for training for early
learning providers regarding early brain development. The Office of Early Learning may
contract with the University of Minnesota or other parties to develop and disseminate
this information.
new text end
new text begin
(c) The remainder of the appropriation in paragraph (a) may be used by the Office of
Early Learning to encourage voluntary participation by early learning providers in the
quality rating and improvement system under Minnesota Statutes, section 124D.142.
new text end
new text begin
(a)
new text end
new text begin
Minnesota Statutes 2012, sections 119B.011, subdivision 20a; 119B.03,
subdivisions 1, 2, 5, 6, 6a, 6b, and 8; and 119B.09, subdivision 3,
new text end
new text begin
are repealed.
new text end
new text begin
(b)
new text end
new text begin
Minnesota Statutes 2013 Supplement, section 119B.03, subdivision 4,
new text end
new text begin
is repealed.
new text end
new text begin
(c)
new text end
new text begin
Minnesota Rules, parts 3400.0020, subpart 8; 3400.0030; and 3400.0060,
subparts 2, 4, 6, 6a, and 7,
new text end
new text begin
are repealed.
new text end