Today's Law As Amended


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AB-324 Childcare services: state-subsidized childcare: professional support stipends.(2019-2020)



As Amends the Law Today


SECTION 1.
 (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(1) Research shows that access to quality early care and education programs is crucial to children, families, and the future success of the state.
(2) Early care and education programs provide young children with valuable early learning and child development experiences that get them ready for school and a successful future. With access to quality childcare and early learning, families can also go to work and provide for their needs, knowing that their children are safe, nurtured, and learning.
(3) In recognizing the benefits of quality early care and education to a child’s lifelong well-being and to the path of families to self-sufficiency, it is the intent of the Legislature to build a strong foundation for the early care and education system that optimally serves the unique needs of California’s families and young children.
(b) (1) The Legislature recognizes the importance of providing quality childcare services. It is, therefore, the intent of the Legislature to assist Quality Counts California’s quality rating and improvement system local consortia in providing professional development and higher education support for all qualified childcare providers who work directly with children who receive state-subsidized childcare services.
(2) It is further the intent of the Legislature to support diversity in the early care and education profession, across care settings and childcare provider types, and strengthen and improve the quality and craft of the childcare workforce, in order to support child development and working family needs.
(3) To meet the goals described in this subdivision, it is the intent of the Legislature to provide funding for all of the following purposes:
(A) For crucial local and online community college infrastructure needs to be updated to provide competency-based coursework and issue-specific counseling and navigator support at community colleges for childcare providers.
(B) For the California Child Care Initiative Project to support unlicensed childcare providers in obtaining a family childcare home license and to provide professional development opportunities to these providers.
(C) For Quality Counts California’s quality rating and improvement system local consortia to provide professional development and higher education support for all qualified childcare providers who work directly with children who receive state-subsidized childcare services.
(D) For family care provider apprenticeships to provide preservice and mentoring for family care providers.

SEC. 2.

 Section 8279.7 of the Education Code is amended to read:

8279.7.
 (a) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the funds appropriated for purposes of this section by paragraph (11) of Schedule (b) of Item 6110-196-0001 of Section 2.00 of the Budget Act of 2000 (Chapter 52 of the Statutes of 2000), and that are described in subdivision (i) of Provision 7 of that item, and any other funds appropriated for purposes of this section, shall be allocated to local childcare and development planning councils based on the percentage of state-subsidized, center-based childcare funds received in that county, and shall be used to address the professional support of qualified childcare employees in state-subsidized childcare centers.
(2) Of the funds identified in paragraph (1), funds appropriated in the annual Budget Act for these purposes shall also be allocated to alternative payment program agencies, based on the percentage of state-subsidized childcare vouchers in that county, to provide professional support stipends to qualified persons working in licensed childcare programs that serve a majority of children who receive subsidized childcare services pursuant to this chapter, including, but not limited to, family daycare homes as defined in Section 1596.78 of the Health and Safety Code.
(3) The department shall allow a county plan approved pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) to establish a local childcare and development planning council as the fiscal agent for professional support stipends provided pursuant to paragraph (2).
(4) The department shall provide professional support stipends to qualified childcare employees in state-subsidized childcare centers and family childcare home education networks, upon an appropriation by the Legislature for this purpose.
(b) (1) On or before January 1, 2021, the department shall develop guidelines consistent with this section for use by local childcare and development planning councils, alternative payment program agencies, and partnerships providing stipends pursuant to Section 8280.1 in developing unified county plans for the expenditure of funds allocated pursuant to this section, in coordination with the local Quality Counts California county consortium.
(2) Any county plan developed pursuant to these guidelines shall be approved by the department before the allocation of funds to the local childcare and development planning council or alternative payment program agency, and the department shall ensure that the plan meets all of the following requirements:
(A) The local childcare and development planning council shall develop and submit no more than one professional support stipend plan per county. This plan shall contain the signatures of the following:
(i) All alternative payment program agencies.
(ii) All the Quality Counts California’s quality rating and improvement system local consortia members, as described in Section 8203.1.
(iii) All partnerships providing stipends pursuant to Section 8280.1, if applicable.
(B) Stipends shall be distributed in accordance with the Early Learning and Care Workforce Development Grants Program pursuant to Section 8280.1, and be available for childcare providers across child development program types and settings, and across childcare provider types, including, but not limited to, family daycare home providers, as well as center-based aides, teachers, and site directors.
(C) Stipends shall be integrated into and aligned with the comprehensive Quality Counts California professional development system in that county.
(D) Stipends shall support a childcare provider’s higher education attainment or professional development plan and shall support a childcare provider to move up the California Early Learning Career Lattice, as appropriate.
(E) Stipends shall support individual childcare provider growth, and shall be part of the childcare site’s quality improvement plan, as appropriate.
(F) Stipend use and childcare provider professional development and higher education attainment outcomes shall be registered and reported to the department.
(G) Local childcare and development planning councils and alternative payment program agencies funded pursuant to this section shall conduct a regular evaluation in order to examine participant outcomes and identify and replicate best practices from around the state.
(c) Funds provided to a county for purposes of this section shall be used in accordance with the plan approved pursuant to subdivision (b). A county with an approved plan may retain up to 1 percent of the county’s total allocation made pursuant to this section for reimbursement of administrative expenses associated with the planning process.
(d) (1) The Superintendent shall provide an annual report, no later than April 10 of each year, to the Legislature, the Department of Finance, and the Governor that includes, but is not limited to, a summary of the distribution of the funds by county and by provider type and a description of the funds used to meet the department guidelines established pursuant to subdivision (b).
(2) A report submitted to the Legislature pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.