Background:

Subsidized Child Care Programs.

Subsidized child care programs include the Working Connections Child Care (WCCC) program and the Seasonal Child Care (SCC) program. The Department of Early Learning (DEL) sets policy for child care subsidy programs, and the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) determines eligibility and issues subsidy payments to providers. To receive authorization for 12 months of child care subsidy, an eligible family must have a household income at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Depending on income, the family may be required to pay a copayment to their child care provider.

Working Connections Child Care.

The average monthly caseload of the WCCC may not exceed 33,000 households, and the DSHS must prioritize certain groups for services. These groups include families applying for or receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits; families curing TANF sanction; foster children; children with special needs; minor parents attending high school full time; families receiving child welfare services, child protective services, or a family assessment response; and families who have received WCCC subsidy within the past 30 days and are reapplying for the program.

Care through the WCCC program may be provided by licensed child care centers, licensed family homes, or by in-home/relative providers also referred to as Family, Friend, and Neighbor providers. Parents receiving WCCC must be working or participating in a DSHS-approved activity.

Seasonal Child Care.

The SCC program provides subsidized child care to seasonally employed agricultural workers in Adams, Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Franklin, Grant, Kittitas, Okanogan, Skagit, Walla Walla, Whatcom, and Yakima counties.

The SCC may be provided in licensed child care centers or in licensed family homes. In fiscal year 2017, 927 families received SCC.

Department of Children, Youth, and Families.

Legislation enacted in 2017 required the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) to submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature by December 1, 2017, outlining a plan for transferring the WCCC program into the DCYF by July 1, 2019. This report included a plan for transferring program eligibility staff, information technology and phone systems, shared client data, and service delivery from the DSHS to the DCYF.

Summary:

Effective July 1, 2019, all powers, duties, and functions of the DSHS pertaining to the WCCC and SCC programs are transferred to the DCYF. The transfer includes:

all tangible property used in carrying out the program functions, including office equipment, reports, records, and files;
any appropriations made to the DSHS for the programs' administration. If apportionments of budget funds are required due to the transfers, the Director of the Office of Financial Management must certify the apportionment to the affected agencies, the State Auditor, and the State Treasurer;
employees engaged in performing program functions. Employees classified under state civil service law are assigned to the DCYF without any loss of rights. Employees whose positions are within an existing bargaining unit description at the DCYF must become part of that bargaining unit; and
all rules and pending business before the DSHS pertaining to the programs are continued and to be acted upon by the DCYF.

The DCYF assumes all program responsibilities for the WCCC and the SCC programs, including determinations of program eligibility, providing services to parents applying for or receiving benefits, making payments to providers, and establishing and monitoring program outcome measures.

House	95	0
Senate	48	1