needs.

requirements:

meet performance requirements.

described in Sections 10372 and 10372.5.

alternative payment program in both Assembly Bill 55 of the 1985–86 Regular Session of the Legislature and this section shall be used to fund this second priority.

To offer maximum support for parents and providers, alternative payment programs shall have access to resource and referral services. Funding shall be adequate to purchase care at the fee charged the private client for the same service as well as to provide locally designed support services for parents and providers. In communities where there are no resource and referral agencies, alternative payment programs shall provide the following support services:

information.

Alternative payments may be made for services provided in licensed centers and family child care homes, for care provided in the child’s home, and for other types of care which conform to applicable law.

of care and under penalty of perjury by both the parent or guardian of the child receiving services and the childcare provider.

without further legislative action, except that if such provisions of a memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds, the provisions shall not become effective unless approved by the Legislature.

and actual times care was provided each day, including the time the child entered and the time the child left care each day, that is signed under penalty of perjury by both the parent or guardian and the childcare provider, attesting that the information provided is accurate.

of a memorandum of understanding require the expenditure of funds, the provisions shall not become effective unless approved by the Legislature.

shall build on the recommendations of the working group established pursuant to Section 10280.2 and shall be aligned with the recommendations of the Joint Labor Management Committee established pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 10280.2.

methodology and cost estimate model.

Development Fund state plan or amendment to the state plan submitted to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families to the Senate Health and Human Services budget subcommittees, Assembly and Senate Education budget subcommittees, and the Legislative Analyst’s Office no later than July 10, 2024.

policies. The report shall include all of the following:

(A) The department’s plan to set new reimbursement rates under the alternative methodology by no later than July 1, 2025.

(B) The estimated costs and estimated timelines associated with the implementation components of the approved single rate structure, including, but not limited to, state operations resources, technology and infrastructure changes, and any regulatory or statutory changes necessary to implement the approved single rate structure.

keeping with the goals set for funds appropriated pursuant to Provision 19 of Item 5180-101-0001 of the Budget Act of 2025 and with subparagraph (i) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (m) of Section 98.45 of Subpart E of Part 98 of Subchapter A of Subtitle A of Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

(ii) Type of care setting.

(iii) Regulatory requirements applicable to each type of care setting.

(iv) Time categories.

If the market rate survey is used to set reimbursement rates, the following shall apply:

for children with exceptional needs as provided in Section 10281.5.

childcare provider does not have a rate sheet on file, the applicable rate category that results in the higher reimbursement.

Out of funds appropriated in accordance with paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 10214 for alternative payment programs, the department shall reallocate funds as necessary to reimburse alternative payment programs, excluding programs operating pursuant to Chapter 21 (commencing with Section 10370), for actual and allowable costs incurred for additional services. An alternative payment program may apply for reimbursement of up to 3 percent of the contract amount, or for a greater amount subject to the discretion of the department based on the availability of funds. The department shall approve or deny applications submitted pursuant to this section, but shall not consider applications received after September 30 of the current calendar year. The department shall distribute reimbursement funds for each approved

application within 90 days of receipt of the application if it was filed between May 1 and July 20, inclusive, of the current calendar year. Applications received after July 20 are not subject to the 90-day requirement for the distribution of funds. If requests for reimbursement pursuant to this section exceed available funds, the department shall assign priority for reimbursement according to the order in which it receives applications. Funds received by an alternative payment program pursuant to this section that are not substantiated by the program’s annual audit shall be returned to the department.

The reimbursement for alternative payment programs shall include the cost of child care paid to child care providers plus the administrative and support services costs of the alternative payment program. The total cost for administration and support services shall not exceed an amount equal to 17.5 percent of the total contract amount. The administrative costs shall not exceed the costs allowable for administration under federal requirements, and shall include, but not be limited to, costs associated with the dissemination of information on developmental screenings, including information on existing resources and a description of how a family or eligible child care

provider may utilize those resources to obtain developmental screenings, as described in Section 9858c of the Title 42 of the United States Code.

If the market rate survey is used to set reimbursement rates, the following shall apply:

allowable for administration under federal requirements.

The audits for such agencies shall include, but not be limited to, a sampling of the evidence of fees charged to, and paid by, families of nonsubsidized children, the daily enrollment of subsidized children, the number of days of service provided to subsidized children, the assessment and collection of parent fees, and the availability of support services to subsidized children and their families as needed pursuant to the terms of the contract.

When making referrals, every agency operating both a direct service program and an alternative payment program shall provide at least four referrals, at least one of which shall be a provider over which the agency has no fiscal or operational control, as well as information to a family on the family’s ability to choose a license exempt provider.

“State law requires licensed child day care facilities to make accessible to the public a copy of any

licensing report pertaining to the facility that documents a facility visit or a substantiated complaint investigation. In addition, a more complete file regarding a child care licensee may be available at an office of the State Department of Social Services’ Community Care Licensing Division. You have the right to access any public information in these files.”

administrator for any parent seeking subsidized child care for whom these programs are not able to provide child care and development services. A child care and development contractor or program described in this paragraph may utilize any waiting lists developed at its local site to fill vacancies for its specific population. Families enrolled from a local site waiting list shall be enrolled pursuant to Section 10271.

program in place before the effective date of this subdivision from continuing to require a child care provider, including child care centers and family child care homes, to accept direct deposit or another form of electronic payment after the effective date of this subdivision.

agency, until the date the audit is resolved, whichever is longer.

Alternative payment programs and providers operating or providing services pursuant to this chapter may use a digital signature that complies with state and federal standards, as determined by the department, that may be a marking that is either computer generated or produced by electronic means and is intended by the signatory to have the same effect as a handwritten signature. The use of a digital signature shall have the same force and effect as the use of a manual signature if the requirements for digital signatures and their acceptable technology, as provided in Section 16.5 of the Government Code and in Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 22000) of Division 7 of Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations, are satisfied.

Alternative payment programs and providers operating or providing services pursuant to this chapter may use digital forms to allow families to apply for services, if those forms comply with state and federal standards.

An alternative payment agency, including, but not limited to, an alternative payment agency for migrant child care and development programs established pursuant to Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 10235), shall provide to the department, on a monthly basis, data about child care caseload in the alternative payment program established pursuant to this chapter and migrant child care and development programs established pursuant to Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 10235). This data shall include county-by-county caseload, expenditures, unit costs, family fees, and other key variables requested by the department to determine any additional state allocations to these programs and for purposes of emergency response.