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                                                       PRINTER'S NO. 375

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA


HOUSE BILL

No. 324 Session of 2007


        INTRODUCED BY BIANCUCCI, FABRIZIO, KOTIK, DERMODY, ROEBUCK,
           BELFANTI, CALTAGIRONE, DONATUCCI, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GEORGE,
           GERGELY, GIBBONS, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HARHAI, HENNESSEY,
           JOSEPHS, KING, MELIO, MUNDY, M. O'BRIEN, PETRARCA, PRESTON,
           REICHLEY, SANTONI, SOLOBAY, STABACK, STURLA, WALKO,
           WOJNAROSKI, YOUNGBLOOD, YUDICHAK AND CURRY, FEBRUARY 9, 2007

        REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH, FEBRUARY 9, 2007

                                     AN ACT

     1  Providing for a comprehensive interagency plan for child day-
     2     care services and early childhood development services and
     3     for the powers and duties of the Department of Public
     4     Welfare.

     5     The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     6  hereby enacts as follows:
     7  Section 1.  Short title.
     8     This act shall be known and may be cited as the Child Day
     9  Care and Early Childhood Development State Plan Act.
    10  Section 2.  Definitions.
    11     The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
    12  have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
    13  context clearly indicates otherwise:
    14     "Child day care."  Care in lieu of parental care given for
    15  part of the 24-hour day to children under 16 years of age, away
    16  from their own homes. The term does not include child day care
    17  furnished in places of worship during religious services.

     1     "Department."  The Department of Public Welfare of the
     2  Commonwealth.
     3     "Early childhood development services."  Services which are
     4  intended to provide an environment which enhances the
     5  educational, social, cultural, emotional and recreational
     6  development of children from birth through eight years of age
     7  but which are not intended to serve as a substitute for
     8  compulsory academic programs.
     9  Section 3.  Annual comprehensive State plan for child day-care
    10                 and early childhood development services.
    11     (a)  Annual plan.--Through an annual State plan on child day-
    12  care and early childhood development services, the department,
    13  in coordination with the Department of Health and the Department
    14  of Education, shall establish goals and objectives and review
    15  and assess the State's child day-care and early childhood
    16  development service delivery system, including State efforts to
    17  assure the provision of accessible, available and affordable
    18  quality child day-care and early childhood development services
    19  to the general public. The plan shall be developed in relation
    20  to Statewide and local needs and shall take into consideration
    21  available demographic studies. It shall reflect the needs of
    22  families in different social, economic and cultural
    23  circumstances and the needs of children of different ages and
    24  stages of development and of children with special needs.
    25     (b)  Submission.--No later than May 1 of each year, the
    26  department shall submit to the Governor, the Chief Clerk of the
    27  Senate and the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives a
    28  State plan on child day-care and early childhood development
    29  services for the ensuing year.
    30     (c)  Common policies and practices.--In the development and
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     1  implementation of an annual State plan, the department shall
     2  promote common policies and practices in programs to the fullest
     3  extent possible and develop mechanisms for interagency
     4  collaboration to create a coordinated State child day-care and
     5  early childhood development services delivery system. This
     6  subsection includes simplification and coordination of the
     7  application process for families needing services.
     8     (d)  Public hearings.--To prepare the State plan, the
     9  department shall hold at least four public hearings in different
    10  geographic locations in this Commonwealth to seek input and
    11  recommendations from parents, early childhood development
    12  professionals, child day-care providers, child advocates,
    13  educators, representatives of local government, health and human
    14  service organizations, health care professionals, labor
    15  organizations, businesses, school officials and other
    16  individuals or agencies interested in issues affecting children
    17  and families.
    18     (e)  Contents of plans.--The State plan shall include the
    19  following information:
    20         (1)  A summary of recommendations submitted to the
    21     department pursuant to Statewide public hearings and the
    22     department's response to the recommendations.
    23         (2)  The amount of Federal, State and local funds
    24     requested for child day-care and early childhood development
    25     services and the allocation of these funds, by the type of
    26     care and by administrative costs. Funding includes the Social
    27     Services Block Grant Act (Public Law 97-35, 42 U.S.C. § 1397
    28     et seq.); Titles I and VI of the Personal Responsibility and
    29     Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-
    30     193, 110 Stat. 2105); the Head Start Act (Public Law 97-35,
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     1     42 U.S.C. § 9831 et seq.); the act of December 19, 1990
     2     (P.L.1372, No.212), known as the Early Intervention Services
     3     System Act; and other pertinent State appropriations.
     4         (3)  A description of child day-care and early childhood
     5     development programs in this Commonwealth. This paragraph
     6     includes child day-care centers, group child day-care homes,
     7     family child day-care homes, school-age child day-care
     8     programs, child day care for teen parents, early intervention
     9     programs and Head Start programs.
    10         (4)  The unduplicated number of children served and
    11     assisted with Federal, State and local funds, by type of care
    12     and age; funding source for the services; the average
    13     duration of the child-care service; and the child capacity of
    14     regulated providers.
    15         (5)  Income eligibility guidelines for federally funded
    16     and State-funded child day-care and early childhood
    17     development services, sliding fee scales and the extent to
    18     which the income guidelines and fee scales are adjusted to
    19     reflect the most recent available State income data.
    20         (6)  The State's practices regarding the monitoring of
    21     child day-care and early childhood development programs to
    22     ensure the health, safety and welfare of children. In
    23     describing the monitoring system, the department shall
    24     identify the extent of announced and unannounced inspections
    25     of regulated providers, the level of compliance with State
    26     standards and the staff-to-provider ratio to accomplish this
    27     task. This paragraph includes recommendations on ways to
    28     improve both the enforcement and monitoring of standards and
    29     compliance with standards.
    30         (7)  The department's coordination, identification or
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     1     arrangement of training for providers in specific program
     2     areas that are designed to improve the quality of child day-
     3     care and early childhood development services. The department
     4     shall identify any Federal, State, local or private funding
     5     allocated for training; the objectives of the training; the
     6     way in which training will be accomplished; and an evaluation
     7     of the previous year's training programs.
     8         (8)  An analysis of any recent demonstration projects
     9     related to child day care or early childhood development
    10     established by the department or the Department of Health or
    11     the Department of Education, using Federal or State funds,
    12     along with a summary of the cost of the projects and the
    13     findings and recommendations of the department.
    14         (9)  A summary of any recent reports, data or surveys
    15     concerning the compensation of child day-care and early
    16     childhood development professionals, loan forgiveness
    17     programs, the State's reimbursement rates and any changes in
    18     rates recommended by the department.
    19         (10)  A summary of the most recent available demographic
    20     information related to the need for child day-care and early
    21     childhood development programs in this Commonwealth.
    22         (11)  Efforts by the private sector and State and local
    23     government to encourage employer-sponsored child day-care
    24     services and policies aimed at addressing the child day-care
    25     needs of working parents.
    26         (12)  A description of the responsibilities and programs
    27     of various State departments with respect to child day-care
    28     and early childhood development services and how coordination
    29     between agencies is addressed. The department shall describe
    30     its responsibilities and programs under various program
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     1     offices and related programs or services available through
     2     the Department of Aging, the Department of Community and
     3     Economic Development, the Department of Education, the
     4     Department of Health or the Department of Labor and Industry.
     5         (13)  Standards and training for child day-care providers
     6     who receive payment through Federal or State child day-care
     7     or early childhood development programs. The standards and
     8     training shall promote the health, safety and developmental
     9     needs of children.
    10         (14)  Identification of gaps in child day-care and early
    11     childhood development services, unmet needs, administrative
    12     barriers that serve as obstacles to obtaining services and
    13     recommendations on how the State can address these issues.
    14         (15)  Statutory and regulatory changes recommended by the
    15     department to address the quality, affordability and
    16     availability of child day-care and early childhood
    17     development services.
    18  Section 10.  Effective date.
    19     This act shall take effect in 60 days.








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