1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to human services; modifying the child care assistance accreditation 
1.3 	bonus;amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.13, subdivision 3a.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 119B.13, subdivision 3a, is amended to 
1.6 	read:
1.7 		Subd. 3a.Provider rate differential for accreditation. A family child care 
1.8 	provider or child care center shall be paid a 15 percent differential above the maximum 
1.9 	rate established in subdivision 1, up to the actual provider rate, if the provider or center 
1.10 	holds a current early childhood development credential or is accredited. For a family 
1.11 	child care provider, early childhood development credential and accreditation includes 
1.12 	an individual who has earned a child development associate degree, a child development 
1.13 	associate credential, a diploma in child development from a Minnesota state technical 
1.14 	college, or a bachelor's or post baccalaureate degree in early childhood education from 
1.15 	an accredited college or university, or who is accredited by the National Association for 
1.16 	Family Child Care or the Competency Based Training and Assessment Program. For a 
1.17 	child care center, accreditation includes accreditation that meets the following criteria: 
1.18 	the accrediting organization must demonstrate the use of standards that promote the 
1.19 	physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of children. The accreditation 
1.20 	standards shall include, but are not limited to, positive interactions between adults and 
1.21 	children, age-appropriate learning activities, a system of tracking children's learning, 
1.22 	use of assessment to meet children's needs, specific qualifications for staff, a learning 
1.23 	environment that supports developmentally appropriate experiences for children, health 
1.24 	and safety requirements, and family engagement strategies. The commissioner of human 
2.1 	services, in conjunction with the commissioners of education and health, will develop an 
2.2 	application and approval process based on the criteria in this section and any additional 
2.3 	criteria. The process developed by the commissioner of human services must address 
2.4 	periodic reassessment of approved accreditations. The commissioner of human services 
2.5 	must report the criteria developed, the application, approval, and reassessment processes, 
2.6 	and any additional recommendations by February 15, 2013, to the chairs and ranking 
2.7 	minority members of the legislative committees having jurisdiction over early childhood 
2.8 	issues. Based on an application process developed by the commissioner in conjunction 
2.9 	with the commissioners of education and health, the Department of Human Services must 
2.10 	accept applications from accrediting organizations beginning on July 1, 2013, and on an 
2.11 	annual basis thereafter. The provider rate differential shall be paid to centers holding an 
2.12 	accreditation from an approved accrediting organization beginning on a billing cycle to be 
2.13 	determined by the commissioner, no later than the last Monday in February of a calendar 
2.14 	year. The commissioner shall annually publish a list of approved accrediting organizations. 
2.15 	An approved accreditation must be reassessed by the commissioner every two years. 
2.16 	If an approved accrediting organization is determined to no longer meet the approval 
2.17 	criteria, the organization must be notified by the commissioner and the differential 
2.18 	payment must end after a 15-day notice period. The following accreditations shall be 
2.19 	recognized for the provider rate differential until an approval process is implemented: the 
2.20 	National Association for the Education of Young Children, the Council on Accreditation, 
2.21 	the National Early Childhood Program Accreditation, the National School-Age Care 
2.22 	Association, or the National Head Start Association Program of Excellence. For 
2.23 	Montessori programs, accreditation includes the American Montessori Society, Association 
2.24 	of Montessori International-USA, or the National Center for Montessori Education.