Public Notices
Department of Children and Families
(Child Care Development Fund Plan)
Public Hearing: On Monday, May 16, 2011 from 1:00 to 4:00 PM, the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF), will hold a Public Hearing on Wisconsin's Plan for Providing Child Care Services under the 2011-2013 Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Draft Plan. The Public Hearing will take place in Conference Room D203 at the GEF 1 State Office Building, 201 East Washington Avenue, Madison, WI 53703. Visitors to GEF 1 must use the main entrance at 201 East Washington Avenue and register at the customer service desk in the lobby.
Background: The purpose of the Public Hearing is to solicit verbal or written comments from the public on Wisconsin's proposed plan for the use of federal CCDF dollars for the period of 10/01/11 through 09/30/13.
Every two years, DCF must submit a plan to the Administration for Children and Families for the use of CCDF funds over the next two years. This is an important source of funding for financing child care subsidy in Wisconsin and related programs as well as quality improvement initiatives in early care and education. Broadly speaking, the purpose of CCDF is to:
• Help low income families through offsetting the costs of child care when the are working or preparing for work;
• Support child care for participants in the Wisconsin Works (W-2) program;
• Support ongoing fraud detection efforts; and,
• To provide support that improves the quality of child care programs and services.
In the area of improving quality, funding is used to pay for the Quality Rating Improvement System, scholarships and support for child care workers, licensing staff, to support child care resource and referral services, and to support technical assistance for child care providers. In Wisconsin, the legislative process provides direction and decisions for the use of this fund, and the DCF/Division of Early Care and Education (DECE) is responsible for its administration.
Opportunity for Public Comment: After April 19, 2011, interested parties can access the 2011-2013 CCDF Draft Plan on the Department of Children and Families Child Care web page under the heading, Other Child Care Resources, at
http://dcf.wisconsin.gov/childcare/default.htm
Individuals who plan to testify about the CCDF Draft Plan on May 16 should submit a copy of the text of their comments to ensure clarity in the recording of comments. Staff will also receive other written comments at the hearing or through the mail for inclusion in the public comment summary document. Written comments will receive equal consideration to the testimony given at the hearing.
Contact Person: Please send your comments about the 2011-2013 State CCDF Draft Plan or any questions about the web page location to Jane Penner-Hoppe by e-mail at
jane.pennerhoppe@wisconsin.gov or contact her at: Division of Early Care and Education, Department of Children and Families, PO Box 8916, Madison, WI 53708-8916, 608.261-6725. All comments must be received no later than 5/19/11. Specific accommodation requests for the Public Hearing must be made to Jane Penner-Hoppe by May 9, 2011.
