HomeMy WebLinkAbout20002474.tiff CORRES O iiA CE RESPONSE
DEPARTMENT OF (..,?1-O(} klCay1 ` �CC��l �'C
* * * PLEASE RESPOND WITHIN THREE DAYS.* * *
IF RESPONSE WILL BE DELAYED,
PLEASE NOTIFY "CTB GROUP" BY E-MAIL
OF EXPECTED DATE FOR RESPONSE.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Narrative:
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METHOD OF RESPONSE:
Board Action
Work Session held vx. Atccousi 2 b'r2000
Letter (Attached)
Telephone Call
No Response (explain)
Depa ment ead Signature
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( a/nae7d 6 ncaL. 2000-2474
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July 20, 2000
Weld County Commissioners
915 10th Avenue
Greeley, Colorado 80631
Dear Commissioners:
The child care centers of Weld County have been providing quality child care choices to families
eligible to receive assistance through Social Services for 40+years. Prior to about 1990, child
care providers were reimbursed at the same rate they charged non-subsidized parents. At that
point, Weld County began underpaying providers for their services. Providers set their child care
rates to operate at a break-even level. Reimbursement rates have stayed frozen for three to four
years at a time, whereas provider costs increase annually. This forces centers to somehow absorb
the loss in revenue from subsidized families. At this time, some providers limit the number of
subsidized children they will accept to decrease financial loss.
With appropriate funding there would be an adequate number of spaces available for all children,
including infants and toddlers. Many providers have to limit the number of spaces made
available to subsidized families due to the low reimbursement rate. This limits parent choice
which is an important guideline in the Federal Register, and creates a two-tiered system where
low income parents don't have access to the same care as non-subsidized parents.
We are requesting that the County Commissioners examine and adjust reimbursement rates on an
annual basis to insure equal access to child care services for all families and providers can
operate at a break even level. Statistics clearly show that for every one dollar spent on consistent
early child care,taxpayers save over seven dollars on juvenile intervention.
We respectfully request to meet with the County Commissioners to discuss this request at your
earliest convenience. It is clear that without a reimbursement rate increase for this fall, many
centers are facing the same deficits for subsidized families and the resulting budget shortfalls.
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DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
PO BOX A
CO
GREELEY, C 80632
' WEBSITE:www.co.weld.co.us
Administration and Public Assistance(970)352-1551
Child Support(970)352-6933
COLORADO MEMORANDUM
TO: Barbara J. Kirkmeyer, Chair Date: August 25, 2000
Board of County Commissioners
FR: Judy A. Griego, Director, Social Services-7 C€ I Ck. Q\uf
RE: Annual Process to Assess the Need for CM Care ate Increases—
Work Session Agenda Item for August 28, 2000, 10:00 a.m.
The purpose of this Memorandum is to request Board direction and approval of an annual
process for the Weld County Department of Social Services to assess the need for child
care rate increases to providers. The Department, through this annual process, wishes to
assist the Board in determining if child care rate increases to providers are warranted and
resources available to pay for these increases.
Proposed Approaches to Annually Assess the Need for Child Care Rate Increases to Providers:These
approaches may be combined or implemented independently.
• Consider Basing Provider Increases on a Comparison of Provider Rates Among the Ten
Large Counties. The Board may want to assess if Weld County is within 5%of the average
provider rate costs among the Ten Large Counties. The source of this information,which is
provided through a County Budget Letter,would be from the Colorado Department of Human
Services.
• Consider Basing Provider Increases on Cost of Living Information. During each County
Budget Process,the Director of Finance and Administration provides planning information to
County Departments regarding cost of living increases. For Calendar Year 2001,the cost of living
percentage is 4%. The Board may wish to use this information independently or in combination
with the other two approaches—Comparison of Provider Rates Among the Ten Large Counties or
a Periodic Survey of Weld County Provider Rates.
• Consider Basing Provider Increases on a Periodic Survey of Provider Rates. The Board may
wish to have the Department conduct periodic surveys to identify individual rates by each Child
Care Center and Licensed Child Care Home and to average Weld County rates based on these
individual rates. The Department concluded a provider rate survey last year. The Depariuient
does not recommend an annual survey. It does not appear that other County Departments conduct
an annual survey. The Department does recommend a survey being conducted every two years or
every three years.
To further refine the survey process,the Department would like to include more information from
Child Care Centers and Licensed Child Care Homes regarding the reasons for the rate increases.
Also,the Department wishes to identify the annual percentage salary increases made by Centers
directly to staff. This type of refinement would require more information from providers who may
be reluctant to provide such information. The Board may need to have this requirement included
as part of any fiscal agreement. If a Child Care Center or Licensed Child Care Home does not
participate in a provider rate survey as required,the Department,under Board policy,may not
contract with them or their provider rates cannot be increased.
For each of the approaches listed above,Department staff would be required to enter into new fiscal
agreement each time provider rates are increased. In addition,the process of conducting a provider rate
survey with Weld County providers is very time consuming and is a significant workload issue for the
Department.
Other Information or Factors Affecting an Annually Assessment of Child Care Rate Increases to
Providers:
Consider Client Eligibility and Parental Fee Information. If the State or the Board makes
changes in client eligibility or parental fee guidelines,the Board needs to consider these factors in
relation to the cost of child care rate increases to providers.
Consider Budget Information. Our total Child Care Block Allocation for SFY2001 is
$3,003,537. In our TANF Bid for SFY2001,we planned for a TANF allocation transfer of
$900,000 to cover child care over-expenditures. This action will result in a total budget of
$3,903,537 for child care.
Finally, the Department wishes to establish an annual target date to conclude its work to
the Board. The Department recommends presenting its information and
recommendations to the Board on October 31 of each year.
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