1997 Minnesota Statutes

     119B.21 Child care services grants. 

    Subdivision 1.    Grants established.  The commissioner 
 shall award grants to develop child care services, including 
 child care service development grants for start-up and facility 
 improvement expenses, interim financing, staff training 
 expenses, and grants for child care resource and referral 
 programs.  Child care service development grants may include 
 family child care technical assistance awards up to $1,000.  The 
 commissioner shall develop a grant application form, inform 
 county social service agencies about the availability of child 
 care services grants, and set a date by which applications must 
 be received by the commissioner. 

    Subd. 2.    Distribution of funds.  (a) The commissioner 
 shall allocate grant money appropriated for child care service 
 development among the development regions designated by the 
 governor under section 462.385, considering the following 
 factors for each economic development region: 

    (1) the number of children under 13 years of age needing 
 child care in the service area; 

    (2) the geographic area served by the agency; 

    (3) the ratio of children under 13 years of age needing 
 child care to the number of licensed spaces in the service area; 

    (4) the number of licensed child care providers and 
 extended day school age child care programs in the service area; 
 and 

    (5) other related factors determined by the commissioner. 

    (b) Out of the amount allocated for each economic 
 development region, the commissioner shall award grants based on 
 the recommendation of the child care regional advisory 
 committees.  In addition, the commissioner shall award no more 
 than 75 percent of the money either to child care facilities for 
 the purpose of facility improvement or interim financing or to 
 child care workers for staff training expenses.  

    (c) Any funds unobligated may be used by the commissioner 
 to award grants to proposals that received funding 
 recommendations by the regional advisory committees but were not 
 awarded due to insufficient funds.  

    (d) The commissioner may allocate grants under this section 
 for a two-year period and may carry forward funds from the first 
 year as necessary. 

    Subd. 3.    Child care regional advisory committees.  
 Child care regional advisory committees shall review and make 
 recommendations to the commissioner on applications for family 
 child care technical assistance awards and service development 
 grants under this section.  The commissioner shall appoint the 
 child care regional advisory committees in each governor's 
 economic development region.  People appointed under this 
 subdivision must represent the following constituent groups:  
 family child care providers, group center providers, parent 
 users, health services, social services, public schools, Head 
 Start, employers, and other citizens with demonstrated interest 
 in child care issues.  Members of the advisory task force with a 
 direct financial interest in a pending grant proposal may not 
 provide a recommendation or participate in the ranking of that 
 grant proposal.  Committee members may be reimbursed for their 
 actual travel, child care, and child care provider substitute 
 expenses for up to six committee meetings per year.  The child 
 care regional advisory committees shall complete their reviews 
 and forward their recommendations to the commissioner by the 
 date specified by the commissioner. 

    Subd. 4.    Distribution of funds for child care resource 
 and referral programs.  (a) The commissioner shall allocate 
 funds appropriated for child care resource and referral services 
 considering the following factors for each economic development 
 region served by the child care resource and referral agency:  

    (1) the number of children under 13 years of age needing 
 child care in the service area; 

    (2) the geographic area served by the agency; 

    (3) the ratio of children under 13 years of age needing 
 care to the number of licensed spaces in the service area; 

    (4) the number of licensed child care providers and 
 extended day school age child care programs in the service area; 
 and 

    (5) other related factors determined by the commissioner.  

    (b) The commissioner may renew grants to existing resource 
 and referral agencies that have met state standards and have 
 been designated as the child care resource and referral service 
 for a particular geographical area.  The recipients of renewal 
 grants are exempt from the proposal review process. 

    Subd. 5.    Purposes for which a child care services grant 
 may be awarded.  The commissioner may award grants for: 

    (1) child care service development grants for the following 
 purposes: 

    (i) for creating new licensed day care facilities and 
 expanding existing facilities, including, but not limited to, 
 supplies, equipment, facility renovation, and remodeling; 

    (ii) for improving licensed day care facility programs, 
 including, but not limited to, staff specialists, staff 
 training, supplies, equipment, and facility renovation and 
 remodeling; 

    (iii) for supportive child development services including, 
 but not limited to, in-service training, curriculum development, 
 consulting specialist, resource centers, and program and 
 resource materials; 

    (iv) for carrying out programs including, but not limited 
 to, staff, supplies, equipment, facility renovation, and 
 training; 

    (v) for interim financing; 

    (vi) family child care technical assistance awards; and 

    (vii) for capacity building through the purchase of 
 appropriate technology and software, and staff training to 
 create, enhance, and maintain financial systems for facilities; 

    (2) child care resource and referral program services 
 identified in section 119B.19, subdivision 3; or 

    (3) targeted recruitment initiatives to expand and build 
 capacity of the child care system. 

    Subd. 6.    Funding priorities; facility improvement, 
 interim financing, and training grants.  In evaluating 
 applications for funding and making recommendations to the 
 commissioner, the child care regional advisory committees shall 
 rank and give priority to:  

    (1) new programs or projects, or the expansion or 
 improvement of existing programs or projects in areas where a 
 demonstrated need for child care facilities has been shown, with 
 special emphasis on programs or projects in areas where there is 
 a shortage of licensed child care; 

    (2) new programs and projects, or the expansions or 
 enrichment of existing programs or projects that serve sick 
 children, infants or toddlers, children with special needs, 
 children from low-income families, or parents needing child care 
 during nonstandard hours; 

    (3) unlicensed providers who wish to become licensed; 

    (4) improvement of existing programs; 

    (5) child care programs seeking accreditation and child 
 care providers seeking certification; and 

    (6) entities that will use grant money for scholarships for 
 child care workers attending educational or training programs 
 sponsored by the entity. 

    Subd. 7. Repealed, 1997 c 162 art 1 s 19 

    Subd. 8.    Eligible grant recipients.  Eligible 
 recipients of child care grants are licensed providers of child 
 care, or those in the process of being licensed, resource and 
 referral programs, or corporations or public agencies, or any 
 combination thereof.  

    Subd. 9.    Grant match requirements.  Child care grants 
 for facility improvements, interim financing, resource and 
 referral, and staff training and development require a 25 
 percent local match by the grant applicant.  A local match is 
 not required for a family child care technical assistance award. 

    Subd. 10.    Family child care technical assistance 
 awards.  Technical assistance awards for child care service 
 development must be used by the family child care provider 
 grantee for facility improvements, including, but not limited 
 to, improvements to meet licensing requirements, improvements to 
 expand the facility, toys and equipment, start-up costs, interim 
 financing, or staff training and development.  

    Subd. 11.    Advisory task force.  The commissioner may 
 convene a statewide advisory task force which shall advise the 
 commissioner on grants or other child care issues.  The 
 following constituent groups must be represented:  family child 
 care providers, center providers, parent users, health services, 
 social services, Head Start, public schools, employers, and 
 other citizens with demonstrated interest in child care issues.  
 Each regional grant review committee formed under subdivision 3, 
 shall appoint a representative to the advisory task force.  
 Additional members may be appointed by the commissioner.  The 
 commissioner may convene meetings of the task force as needed.  
 Terms of office and removal from office are governed by the 
 appointing body.  The commissioner may compensate members for 
 their travel, child care, and child care provider substitute 
 expenses for meetings of the task force.  

    Subd. 12.    Advisory committee costs.  The commissioner 
 may use money appropriated for services under this section for 
 administrative expenses associated with advisory committees and 
 task forces authorized by this section. 

    HIST: 1989 c 282 art 2 s 155; 1990 c 426 art 1 s 32,33; 1990 c 
 568 art 4 s 56-58; 1991 c 292 art 5 s 66,67; 1994 c 465 art 3 s 
 38; 1997 c 162 art 4 s 47-56