1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to child care rates; removing an obsolete date;amending Minnesota Statutes 
1.3 	2018, section 119B.13, subdivision 3a.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2018, section 119B.13, subdivision 3a, is amended to read:
1.6 		Subd. 3a.Provider rate differential for accreditation. (a) A family child care provider 
1.7 	or child care center shall be paid a 15 percent differential above the maximum rate established 
1.8 	in subdivision 1, up to the actual provider rate, if the provider or center holds a current early 
1.9 	childhood development credential or is accredited.
1.10 	(1) For a family child care provider, early childhood development credential and 
1.11 	accreditation includes an individual who has earned a child development associate degree, 
1.12 	a child development associate credential, a diploma in child development from a Minnesota 
1.13 	state technical college, or a bachelor's or post baccalaureate degree in early childhood 
1.14 	education from an accredited college or university, or who is accredited by the National 
1.15 	Association for Family Child Care or the Competency Based Training and Assessment 
1.16 	Program.
1.17 	(2) For a child care center, accreditation includes accreditation that meets the following 
1.18 	criteria: the accrediting organization must demonstrate the use of standards that promote 
1.19 	the 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,; use 
1.22 	of assessment to meet children's needs,; specific qualifications for staff,; a learning 
2.1 	environment that supports developmentally appropriate experiences for children,; health 
2.2 	and safety requirements,; and family engagement strategies.
2.3 	(b) Based on an application process developed by the commissioner in conjunction with 
2.4 	the commissioners of education and health, the Department of Human Services must accept 
2.5 	applications from accrediting organizations beginning on July 1, 2013, and on an annual 
2.6 	basis thereafter.
2.7 	(c) The provider rate differential shall be paid to centers holding an accreditation from 
2.8 	an approved accrediting organization beginning on a billing cycle to be determined by the 
2.9 	commissioner, no later than the last Monday in February of a calendar year.
2.10 	(d) The commissioner shall annually publish a list of approved accrediting organizations. 
2.11 	An approved accreditation must be reassessed by the commissioner every two years. If an 
2.12 	approved accrediting organization is determined to no longer meet the approval criteria, the 
2.13 	organization and centers being paid the differential under that accreditation must be given 
2.14 	a 90-day notice by the commissioner and the differential payment must end after a 15-day 
2.15 	notice to affected families and centers as directed in Minnesota Rules, part 3400.0185, 
2.16 	subparts 3 and 4.
2.17 	(e) The following accreditations shall be recognized for the provider rate differential 
2.18 	until an approval process is implemented: the National Association for the Education of 
2.19 	Young Children, the Council on Accreditation, the National Early Childhood Program 
2.20 	Accreditation, the National School-Age Care Association, or the National Head Start 
2.21 	Association Program of Excellence. For Montessori programs, accreditation includes the 
2.22 	American Montessori Society, Association of Montessori International-USA, or the National 
2.23 	Center for Montessori Education.