Child Care AdministrationProvider Contract OverviewOctober 1, 2021-September 30, 2026

Supporting the well-being and economic independence of Arizona’s families by providing quality child care assistance and services.

des.az.gov/services/child-and-family/child-care

● Child Care and Development Fund

● DES Child Care Contracts - Key Highlights

● Additional Resources for Child Care Providers

Overview

Child Care Administration Child Care and Development Fund Overview

Relationship between Law, Rule, and Plan

CCDBG Act CCDF Final Rule

CCDF Plan

🌐Resources/Links:Administration for Children & Families Office of Child Care CCDF Final Rule Arizona CCDF State Plan (2018-2021)

Child Care and Development Fund

Major Provisions of CCDF:● Protect the health and safety of

children in child care.● Help parents make informed choices

and access information to support child development.

● Support equal access to stable, high quality child care for children from low income families.

● Enhance the quality of the early childhood and child care workforce.

Child Development

and School Readiness

Healthy and Safe High-

Quality Child Care

Helping Parents Achieve Financial Stability

DES Child Care Assistance

Child care assistance is available for families at or below 165% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) with children 12 years of age or younger.

Eligibility:● Low-income families that are working● Teen parents enrolled in high school or GED classes● Homeless or domestic violence shelter residents● Individuals who are unable to care due to physical or emotional conditions● Referral from the Arizona Department of Child Safety

des.az.gov/services/child-and-family/child-care/how-apply-for-child-care-assistance

Child Care Administration DES Child Care Provider Contract - Key Updates

DES Child Care Provider Registration Agreement

Purpose: for Licensed Child Care Centers and Group Homes to become contracted child care providers with ADES/CCA, statewide. The goal of this service is to enhance and support the provision of child care services to children and their families.

Key Contract Updates:● Criminal Background Checks/Fingerprinting Requirements● Disaster Preparedness Plan● Empower Program Participation● Suspension and Expulsion Prevention● Group Size Requirements

DES Child Care Provider Registration Agreement

Key Contract Updates, cont:● Liability Insurance ● Payment Claims● Provider Rate Changes● Record Keeping and Retention ● Reporting● Special Needs Services● Training Requirements● Units of Care

Key Contract Highlights: Background Checks● The Department is required to conduct a comprehensive criminal background

check on all individuals whose activities involve the care or supervision of children or unsupervised access to children, whether they provide direct or indirect services to children.

● Please visit the Child Care and Resource Referral website at azccrr.com/background-checks.html for more information on the new requirements for criminal background checks and fingerprint clearance cards.

● All Child Care Centers and Group Homes must have a Disaster PreparednessPlan to be followed in the event of a disaster. A Disaster Preparedness Planmust be submitted to DES with your contract renewal packet.

● The child care facility owner or individual(s) who are responsible for writingand updating the Plan must complete and pass the Disaster EmergencyEvacuation Preparedness (D.E.E.P.TM) online training that is accessible on theADHS website at:azdhs.gov/documents/licensing/childcare-facilities/training/deep-online-training.pdf

Key Contract Highlights: Disaster Preparedness

Key Contract Highlights: Empower Program

● All Child Care Centers and Group Homes must be registered, and maintaincompliance with, the Empower Program which is accessible on the ArizonaDepartment of Health Services (ADHS) website at:azdhs.gov/prevention/nutrition-physical-activity/empower/index.php.

● The Empower Program is based on 10 Standards that support healthy eating,encourage active play, prevent exposure to second- and third-hand smoke,practice sun safety and promote good oral health habits.

● Participating facilities adopt the 10 Standards in exchange for reducedlicensing fees.

Key Contract Highlights: Suspension & Expulsion Prevention

● The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) requires states to ensureproviders utilize all supports to prevent suspension and expulsion of children from child care settings.

● Assistance is available through education, training and support mechanismsfor parents and child care providers related to any issues that may lead to the suspension or expulsion of children in care.

● Suspension and Expulsion Prevention Resources are found at:des.az.gov/preventing-and-reducing-suspensions-and-expulsions-early-care

Effective October 1, 2021, all child care providers and staff are required to complete Foundations 1 - Moving Forward with Expulsion Prevention within

90 days of hire.

Key Contract Highlights: Group Size Requirements● Federal requirements for Child-to-Provider Ratio Standards include a Group

Size limit requirement for Providers receiving funding through DES and the Child Care and Development Fund.

Key Contract Highlights: Liability Insurance● DES requires providers to maintain specific levels of liability insurance and proof

of liability insurance must be included in your Provider Registration packet.● The certificate of insurance must contain the following statement: “Sexual

Abuse/Molestation coverage is included.” ○ Policies or Certificates stating that “Sexual Abuse/Molestation coverage is not

excluded.” do not meet this requirement.● All school districts and individual school sites must submit an ACCORD form

identifying all required components. Trusts will not be accepted.● The policy must include the State of Arizona as an additional insured. ● Inform DES of all updates, changes, and renewals of the insurance

policy/coverage. If an insurance policy is due for renewal, please contact your insurance agent for timely submission of your updated Certificate of Insurance.

Key Contract Highlights: Provider Rate Changes

● DES contracted Child Care Providers will receive a rate increase effectiveOctober 1, 2021. Details are included in the Provider Registration Agreement

● Rate changes include:○ Increase to the 50th percentile of the 2018 Market Rate Survey (MRS).○ Increase infant and toddler rates to the 75th percentile of the 2018 MRS.○ To increase child care access for Foster and Kinship Families, reimbursement

rates for the Department of Child Safety referred children at 75th percentile of the 2018 Market Rate Survey.

○ DCS children will receive full day rates regardless of the number of hours incare.

○ Increasing tiered reimbursement rates: Providers with Quality First 3-star,4-star, 5-star rating, or that are nationally accredited, will receive a tieredreimbursement rate of 35%.

Key Contract Highlights: Provider Rate Changes

● Adjustments to the DES Reimbursement Rates will be effective the first day ofthe month following the date of the newly executed Provider Rate Agreement.

● Providers must notify DES in writing at least 30 days prior to any rate changeby submitting a new Child Care Provider Rate Agreement CC-214 or by

completing the electronic online: Arizona Child Care Provider Rate Agreement.

Key Contract Highlights: Payments, Records, and Reporting

● Detailed information and “How To” Guides and Videos are available for Providers on the following website: des.az.gov/services/child-and-family/child-care/contract-provider-resources.

● Please visit this page for more information on:○ Payment Claims and Paid Absences○ Record Keeping, including Daily Attendance○ Record Retention Requirements○ Units of Care, including Sign In/Sign Out Records○ Reporting Additional Changes

Key Contract Highlights: Reporting Serious Injuries

● In accordance with A.R.S. §13-3620, Child Care Providers must comply with mandated reporting of child abuse or neglect.

● Providers are also required to take pre-service and ongoing training related to reporting child abuse and neglect, and prevention of child maltreatment.

● DES Child Care Providers must report all serious injuries and deaths to the CCA Provider Contracts Unit, within one (1) business day.

○ A serious injury is defined as: “a serious injury or accident resulting in medical treatment (outside the facility), hospitalization or death of a child.”

Key Contract Highlights: Children with Special Needs

● DES Child Care Providers will receive an enhanced rate for providing high-quality inclusive child care to children with a disability or special health care need, as defined in the Provider Registration Agreement.

● Providers must have national accreditation or a Quality First 3, 4, or 5 Star Rating.

● No more than 10% of a provider’s capacity can be children with disabilities or special needs.

● Supporting documents related to the child’s disability or special health care need must be provided by the parent/guardian as part of their application for child care assistance.

Key Contract Highlights: Provider Training

● Child care staff are required tocreate and maintain an account in the Arizona Early Childhood Workforce Registry at azregistry.org

● Staff can sign up for training, track training completion, and participate inother incentive programs.

● Provider administrators or directors must request and maintainadministrative access to the Registry within 15 days of the contract date.

Key Contract Highlights: Provider TrainingPre-Service Health & Safety Training Requirements

● All child care providers contracted with DES must complete initial (pre-service) training on Health & Safety within the staff member’s first 90 days of hire date.

● Child care directors are required to ensure staff are aware of and compliant with the initial, annual ongoing ADES Health and Safety Training Requirements.

● To register for Health & Safety courses in the Registry:● Search under “My Training Event” under Course Title: “Health” or under

Sponsor Name: Candelen Professional Development Services.

● Select the Health & Safety Module (1 through 6)

Key Contract Highlights: Provider Training

Foundations 1 Training Requirement● All child care providers contracted with DES must complete Moving Forward

with Expulsion Prevention (Foundations 1) training within 90 days of hire.

● To register for Health & Safety courses in the Registry:● Search under “My Training Event” under Course Title: “Foundations” or

under Sponsor Name: Southwest Human Development-Training.● For other Training in the Expulsion Prevention series, search by:

“Expulsion” or Sponsor Name: Southwest Human Development-Training

Key Contract Highlights: Provider Training

● The 2021-2026 DES Provider Registration Agreement requires annualtraining or postsecondary education for DES contracted providers in two or more health and safety subject areas.

● ADHS Licensed Group Homes and DES Certified Family Child CareProviders must complete 12 hours of ongoing health and safety training every 12 months (based on hire date), and ADHS Licensed Child Care Center providers must complete 18 or more hours every 12 months (based on hire date).

Support for Providers with training requirements is available on the DES website: des.az.gov/navigating-ongoing-health-and-safety-training

Child Care Administration Additional Resources for Child Care Providers

Key Contract Highlights: Provider Training

DES partners with community organizations and other state agencies to to support the child care network through CCDF quality set-aside contracts and collaboration with community partners, including:● Child Care Resource & Referral: assists families and supports providers with

access to information and quality child care.● Professional Career Pathways Project/Scholarship: a scholarship for child

care staff working in a DES certified family child care or center-based program to cover college tuition for up to 18 credits a year and provide a stipend for books.

● Child Care at Residential Centers: provide child care services conducted at the site of a residential homeless and/or domestic violence shelter that provides employment and and education case management.

Thank You for providing child care to Arizona’s children and families! We look forward to a renewed partnership and making this new contract term the best one yet!

Contact:Main Line: (602) 542-4216Toll Free: 1-877-822-2322Fax: 602-542-2573CCAContracts@azdes.gov

Website:des.az.gov/services/child-and-family/child-care/

contract-provider-resources