The Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF) has released its draft 2011-13 Wisconsin Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) Plan for public comment. The public has the opportunity to comment on the proposed plan through Monday, May 16, 2011.
BACKGROUND
Every two years, DCF must submit a plan to the federal Administration for Children and Families (ACF) for the use of CCDF funds over the next two fiscal years. CCDF is an important source of funding for financing child care subsidy, its related programs, and for early care and education quality improvement initiatives in Wisconsin. Broadly, the purpose of CCDF is to:
- Help low-income families by offsetting the costs of child care when they are working or preparing for work;
- Support child care for participants in the Wisconsin Works (W-2) program;
- Support ongoing fraud detection efforts; and,
- To provide support that improves the quality of child care programs and services.
CCDF funding is used to pay for the following quality improvement activities: YoungStar (the state’s child care Quality Rating Improvement System, or QRIS), scholarships and support for child care workers, licensing staff, support to child care resource and referral services, and to support technical assistance for child care providers.
In Wisconsin, the legislative process provides direction and decisions for the use of CCDF. The Division of Early Care and Education (DECE) at DCF is responsible for the administration of this fund.
OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT
When reviewing the draft 2011-13 Wisconsin CCDF Plan and preparing any comments, DCF recommends you keep the following three key questions in mind:
- Do you have any overall suggestions or general comments about the CCDF plan?
- Are there additional coordination efforts that should be reflected?
- Are there new or expanded efforts that should be considered by DCF in the future?
Comments regarding the 2011-13 Wisconsin CCDF Plan are due to DCF no later Monday, May 16, 2011. Please send your comments or questions about the 2011-2013 State CCDF Draft Plan to Jane Penner-Hoppe by e-mail at jane.pennerhoppe@wisconsin.gov or contact her by phone at 608-261-6725 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 608-261-6725 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or via mail at: Division of Early Care and Education, Department of Children and Families, PO Box 8916, Madison, WI 53708-8916.
Additionally, DCF will hold a public hearing on the CCDF plan on Monday, May 16, 2011 from 1:00 to 4:00 PM at the GEF 1 State Office Building located at 201 East Washington Avenue, Madison WI, 53703 in Conference Room D203. Individuals who plan to testify about the CCDF Draft Plan at the hearing on May 16 should submit a copy of the text of their comments to ensure clarity in the recording of comments. DCF will also receive other written comments at the hearing or through the mail for inclusion in the public comment summary document. Written comments will receive equal consideration to the testimony given at the hearing. More information about the hearing can be found on the DCF CCDF Hearing Notice.
