CCMTL 133 (Implementation of Am. HB 64 of the 131st General Assembly for Publicly Funded Child Care)
Child Care Manual Transmittal Letter No. 133
September 30, 2015
TO: All Child Care Manual Holders
FROM: Cynthia C. Dungey, Director
SUBJECT: Implementation of Am. HB 64 of the 131st General Assembly for Publicly Funded Child Care

Background:

Amended Substitute House Bill 64 of the 131st General Assembly creates new requirements for publicly funded child care (PFCC). It requires the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) to increase the initial eligibility requirements to 130% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) and to also increase the maximum income level for families to continue to receive publicly funded child care to 300% of the FPL. The bill also waives the family copayment for a caretaker with income at or below 100% of the FPL.

The following amended rules are effective September 28, 2015:

Rule 5101:2-16-01 "Definitions for eligibility for publicly funded child care benefits" has been amended to include redefining the "eligibility period" for child care to extend an eligibility to the Saturday after the last day of the twelfth month of eligibility and to define "temporary absence" for a caretaker.

Rule 5101:2-16-07 "County agency responsibilities for the administration of publicly funded child care" has been amended to move paragraph (B) to clarify the agency's role in the recruitment of child care providers; to change the rule reference in paragraph (C)(4)(a) and to update the reference to the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act in paragraph (I).

Rule 5101:2-16-30 "Eligibility requirements for receipt of publicly funded child care benefits" has been amended to include increasing the initial and on-going income eligibility requirements; to define when an absent caretaker is included or excluded from eligibility determination; to clarify sleep time; to eliminate the receipt of medical assistance as verification for citizenship; and to clarify when child care can be reinstated after termination.

Rule 5101:2-16-34 "Income eligibility requirements for publicly funded child care benefits" has been amended to include allowing a fifty percent disregard of self-employment income in lieu of subtracting business related expenses from the self-employed individual's gross receipts; to drop all cents reported with earned and unearned income when calculating a family's gross monthly income; and to clarify when income is included in the determination of eligibility when a caretaker is temporarily absent from the home.

Rule 5101:2-16-35 "County agency responsibilities for determining eligibility for publicly funded child care benefits" has been amended to add a reference to paragraph (D) of rule 5101:2-16-35.1; to clarify the eligibility period; and to remove the requirements that a county agency shall provide the caretaker with documentation when the documentation is system generated.

Rule 5101:2-16-35.1 "Caretaker eligibility requirements to qualify for publicly funded child care benefits" has been amended to further define what a caretaker needs to complete on the JFS 01138 "Application for Child Care Benefits;" to limit a child's authorization to one provider per week and to clarify when a replacement swipe card must be requested after it has been lost or stolen.

Rule 5101:2-16-36 "County agency responsibility for annual re-determination of eligibility for publicly funded child care" has been amended to remove paragraph (A) which outlined the transition to a new redetermination process and to clarify the county agency's responsibilities in the re-determination process.

Rule 5101:2-16-37 "Caretaker requirements for annual re-determination of eligibility for publicly funded child care" has been amended to remove paragraph (A) which outlined the transition to a new redetermination process.

Rule 5101:2-16-39 "Copayment for publicly funded child care benefits" has been amended to include waiving a copayment for families who have a monthly income at or below one-hundred percent of the FPL and the process for distributing a calculated whole dollar weekly copayment among authorizations.

Implementation:

County agencies must use the new monthly income eligibility standards for all child care applications, redeterminations and case updates processed on or after September 28, 2015.

Caretakers and providers will be notified that the copayment changes made on September 28, 2015 will become effective for service week beginning October 4, 2015.

A child shall be limited to one provider per week for all new applications, case updates and redeterminations processed on or after September 28, 2015.