Effective on the date above, this letter establishes the procedure for determining eligibility when a non-Ohio resident is called to active military duty and the child's substitute caretaker resides in Ohio and is in need of child care due to employment, training and/or education activities.

For families in this circumstance, eligibility will be determined using the deployed caretaker's income for a six month period beginning with the date of the caretaker's departure to active military duty. This will allow time for families to establish sending military pay into the home of the child's substitute caretaker.

In recognition of the current military activities, the following waiver to the current child care policy will support children and families faced with financial, emotional and parental disruption during a period of war:

The procedure is as follows:

1.Document the need for child care, based on the substitute caretaker's employment, training and/or education activities. Child care benefits will be established, based on the needs of the substitute caretaker's schedule. The eligibility determiner shall require the substitute caretaker to complete a JFS 01138, "Application for Child Care Benefits".

2.Authorize benefits based upon the verified income of the deployed caretaker at the time of the caretaker's departure to active military duty. Income shall not exceed 150 % FPL.

3.Child care benefits, based on the deployed caretaker's income and the substitute caretaker's need, will be authorized for a six month period beginning on the date of the caretaker's departure and the child's first date of residence with the substitute caretaker.

4.If the substitute caretaker continues to need child care services beyond this six month waiver period, the eligibility determiner shall require the substitute caretaker to complete a JFS 01138, "Application for Child Care Benefits" and the eligibility determiner will base program eligibility on the substitute caregiver's information.

5.When the caretaker parent that left for active military duty returns, the case must be closed, or scheduled for review or redetermination, whichever is appropriate.

6.Counties will be required to flag the case for review at the end of the six month waiver period and make any changes to the case based on income and family composition.

Considering the current child care funding concerns, this waiver to rule 5101:2-16-39 will only be provided to non-Ohio caretakers who would have been income eligible for subsidized child care had they resided in Ohio. The family must be disrupted as a direct result of the caretaker being called to active military duty and deployed to a location that requires the caretaker to live outside of the home. There must be a documented need for child care services because of employment, education or training activities of the substitute caretaker.

This waiver is not available for a caretaker who voluntarily enlists in the military or who voluntarily changes their military status from reserve to active duty.

This policy will be in place until such time a directive is sent to all CDJFS to stop allowing the waiver procedures for the child care program.

Child Care Procedure Letter No. 6 remains in effect, in addition to this procedure. If you have any questions regarding these procedures, please contact County Technical Support at (614) 466-7762.