Definitions - General Child Care Programs

18078

For the purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) “Adjusted monthly income” means the total countable income as defined below, minus verified child support payments paid by the parent whose child is receiving child development services, excluding the non-countable income listed below:

(1) Earnings of a child under age 18 years;

(2) Loans;

(3) Grants or scholarships to students for educational purposes;

(4) Federal Supplemental Assistance Program (CalFRESH/SNAP) or Women, Infants and Children (WIC) benefits or other food assistance;

(5) Earned Income Tax Credit or tax refund;

(6) GI Bill entitlements, hardship duty pay, hazardous duty pay, hostile fire pay, or imminent danger pay;

(7) Adoption assistance payments received pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 16115 et seq;

(8) Non-cash assistance or gifts;

(9) All income of any individual counted in the family size who is collecting federal Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or State Supplemental Program (SSP) benefits;

(10) Insurance or court settlements including pain and suffering and excluding lost wages and punitive damages;

(11) Reimbursements for work-required expenses such as uniforms, mileage, or per diem expenses for food and lodging;

(12) Business expenses for self-employed family members;

(13) When there is no cash value to the employee, the portion of medical and/or dental insurance documented as paid by the employer and included in gross pay;

(14) Disaster relief grants or payments, except any portion for rental assistance or unemployment; and

(15) AmeriCorps Volunteers In Service to America (VISTA) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) stipends, room and board, and grants.

(b) “Certified Schedule” means the number of hours per day and/or week that a family is approved to receive subsidized early learning and care services. This is also referred to sometimes as a “child care schedule.”

(c) “Child protective services” means children receiving protective services through the local county welfare department as well as children identified by a legal, medical, social service agency or emergency shelter as abused, neglected or exploited or at risk of abuse, neglect or exploitation.

(d) “Declaration” means a written statement signed by a parent under penalty of perjury attesting that the contents of the statement are true and correct to the best of that parent's knowledge.

(e) “Displace families” means the disenrollment of families in order to reduce service levels due to insufficient funding or inability of a contractor to operate one or more sites because of reasons stated in Education Code section 8271.

(f) “Early learning and care program” is defined as “Child Care and Development Program” as set forth in Education Code section 8208(i).

(g) “Early learning and care services” is defined as “Child Care and Development Services” as set forth in Education Code section 8208(j).

(h) “Educational programs” for purposes of determining need for child care and development services means:

(1) Classes or courses for English language learner (ELL) or English as a Second Language (ESL); or

(2) Classes or courses to attain a high school diploma, a General Education Development (GED), or a High School Equivalency (HSE) certificate, as specified in Education Code section 8263(a)(1)(B).(i) “Family experiencing homelessness” is defined as set forth in section 11434(a)(2) of title 42 of the United States Code, known as the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act.

(j) “Family” means the parents and the children for whom the parents are responsible, who comprise the household in which the child receiving services is living. For purposes of income eligibility and family fee determination, when a child and that child's siblings are living in a family that does not include their biological or adoptive parent, “family” shall be considered the child and related siblings.

(k) “Fee schedule” means the “Family Fee Schedule,” issued by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SSPI) pursuant to Education Code section 8273.

(l) “Immediate need” means a situation in which both subsections (1) and (2) apply:

(1) An eligible parent has a need for child care services pursuant to Education Code section 8263(a)(1)(B); and

(2) The contractor determines that no child care is reasonably available from a licensed, TrustLine registered or TrustLine-exempt provider that meets the parent's need for care.

(m) “Income eligibility” for the purpose of determining income eligibility for early learning and care services is defined as set forth in Education Code section 8263.1(a) and (b), as applicable.

(n) “Income fluctuation” means income that varies due to:

(1) Migrant, agricultural, or seasonal work;

(2) Inconsistent and/or unstable employment or self-employment resulting in an inconsistent pattern of income; or

(3) Intermittent, occasional, sporadic, or infrequent earnings or income, including but not limited to bonuses, commissions, lottery winnings, inheritance, back child support payment, overtime, or net proceeds from the sale of real property or stock.

(o) “Initial certification” means the formal processes the contractor goes through to collect information and documentation to determine that the family and/or child meets the criteria for receipt of subsidized child development services as specified in Education Code sections 8263(a)(1)(A) and 8263(a)(1)(B), respectively. The dated signature of the contractor's authorized representative on an application for services certifies that the criteria have been met, and begins the period of eligibility.

(p) “Legally qualified professional” means a person licensed under applicable laws and regulations of the State of California to perform legal, medical, health or social services for the general public.

(q) “Parent” means a biological parent, adoptive parent, stepparent, foster parent, caretaker relative, legal guardian, domestic partner of the parent as defined in Family Code section 297, or any other adult living with a child who has responsibility for the care and welfare of the child.

(r) “Parental Incapacity” means the temporary or permanent inability of the child's parent(s) to provide care and supervision of the child(ren) for any part of the day due to a physical and/or mental health condition.

(s) “Provisional child care provider” means an individual, exempt from licensure pursuant to Health and Safety Code sections 1596.792(d) or (f), who provides child care for a child or children of an eligible parent for a period of up to 30 days when there is an immediate need. The provisional child care provider shall have completed a TrustLine application and submitted fingerprints, in accordance with Health and Safety Code sections 1596.603 and 1596.605.

(t) “Recertification” means the formal processes the contractor goes through to collect information and documentation to determine that the family and/or child continues to meet the criteria for receipt of subsidized child development services as specified in Education Code sections 8263(a)(1)(A) and 8263(a)(1)(B), respectively. The dated signature of the contractor's authorized representative on an application for services certifies that the criteria have been met, and begins the period of eligibility.

(u) “Recipients of service” means families and/or children enrolled in an early learning and care program subsidized by the California Department of Education (CDE).

(v) “Self-Certification of Income” means a declaration signed by the parent under penalty of perjury identifying:

(1) To the extent known, the employer's name, address, start date of work, the rate and frequency of pay, the total amount of income received for the preceding month(s), the type of work performed, and the hours and days worked; or

(2) That the parent does not have income from employment and any source of income used to support the family including non-wage income.

(w) “Total countable income” means all income of the individuals counted in the family size that includes, but is not limited to, the following:

(1) Gross wages or salary, commissions, overtime, tips, bonuses, gambling or lottery winnings;

(2) Wages for migrant, agricultural, or seasonal work;

(3) CalWORKs cash aid;

(4) Gross income from self-employment less business expenses with the exception of wage draws;

(5) Disability or unemployment compensation;

(6) Workers compensation;

(7) Spousal support, child support received from the former spouse or absent parent, or financial assistance for housing costs or car payments paid as part of or in addition to spousal or child support;

(8) Survivor and retirement benefits;

(9) Dividends, interest on bonds, income from estates or trusts, net rental income or royalties;

(10) Rent for room within the family's residence;

(11) Foster care grants, payments or clothing allowance for children placed through child welfare services;

(12) Financial assistance received for the care of a child living with an adult who is not the child's biological or adoptive parent;

(13) Veterans pensions;

(14) Pensions or annuities;

(15) Inheritance;

(16) Allowances for housing or automobiles provided as part of compensation;

(17) Insurance or court settlements for lost wages or punitive damages;

(18) Net proceeds from the sale of real property, stocks, or inherited property; or

(19) Other enterprise for gain.

(x) “Variable schedule,” as provided in Education Code section 8221.5, means a schedule in which the total number of hours worked each week is inconsistent and/or unstable from week to week.

(y) “Vocational training” means an educational or job training/apprenticeship/internship program courses and/or classes leading to a recognized trade, paraprofession or profession.

NOTE: Authority cited: Sections 8261 and 8263, Education Code. Reference: Sections 8202, 8203, 8208, 8221.5, 8261, 8263, 8263.1 and 8273, Education Code.