(1) If the applicant or reapplicant meets one of the qualifiers of the priority list and otherwise meets all eligibility requirements of Part II or III of this chapter, the applicant or reapplicant will not be placed on the wait list and will be eligible to receive WCCC subsidies. The priority list includes:

(a) Families applying for or receiving TANF;

(b) Families receiving TANF and working to cure a sanction;

(c) Foster children;

(d) Families that include a child with special needs;

(e) Families with teen parents (under age twenty-two) who are not living with a parent or guardian, and who are attending a high school full-time that has an on-site child care center;

(f) Families with a child residing with a biological parent or guardian who have received child protective services, child welfare services, or a family assessment response from DSHS in the past six months and has received a referral for child care as part of the family's case management; and

(g) Reapplicants who received subsidies within the last thirty days and:

(i) Have reapplied for subsidies; and

(ii) Have household income of two hundred percent federal poverty level or below.

(2) As provided in WAC 170-290-0001, WCCC is administered to the extent of available funds. If available funds are insufficient to allow all priority groups to not be placed on the wait list and be eligible to receive WCCC subsidies, only the highest ranked groups that can be served within available funds will be prioritized. The priority groups are ranked in the order listed in subsection (1) of this section, highest to lowest.

(3) If funds are not available, an applicant or reapplicant not belonging to a group on the priority list will have their name placed on the wait list upon approval of eligibility. The name will be placed on the wait list based on the date of the application or reapplication and served as funds become available.

(4) If the applicant or reapplicant remains on the wait list for twelve months or longer, a new eligibility determination will be required when subsidy child care becomes available.