Public Notices
Department of Children and Families
Funding for Child Support Enforcement Activities
The cost of administering the child support program in Wisconsin is supported by a combination of federal funds, general purpose revenue, county tax revenue, program revenue collected from service fees, interest on balances in the support collections trust fund, and unclaimed child support. The largest source of funding for child support enforcement activities comes from the federal government in the form of federal child support incentive payments and federal matching funds. Federal matching funds cover 66% of eligible costs.
The federal government distributes child support incentive payments to states to encourage and reward state programs that perform in a cost-effective and efficient manner. These funds support both state operations and child support activities performed by counties through contracts with the Department of Children and Families.
Before changes made in the federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, the federal incentive payments expended for child support enforcement activities covered 34% of eligible costs and were matched by the federal government based on the 66% federal financial participation rate. The Deficit Reduction Act eliminated the ability to receive federal matching funds for federal incentive payments beginning October 1, 2007.
To partially offset the reduction in federal funding,
2007 Wisconsin Act 20 provided additional state funds through GPR. Section
49.24, Stats., as amended by
2007 Wisconsin Act 20, provides that if federal legislation reinstates the matching of federal funds for federal child support incentive payments, various provisions in s.
49.24, Stats., that reinstate prior law are effective on the effective date of that federal legislation. The department shall provide notice of that effective date in the Wisconsin Administrative Register.
In December 2007, the Joint Committee on Finance also directed DCF to include a provision in the county child support contracts specifying that if federal law is subsequently modified to restore the ability to match the federal child support incentive payments at the previous 66% match rate or higher, the counties could no longer access the new GPR funding after the date on which the new federal provisions take effect.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was signed by President Obama on February 17, 2009. This law temporarily restores the ability to match federal child support incentive payments at the previous match rate for the period that begins on October 1, 2008, and ends on September 30, 2010.
Department of Children and Families
Child Care Development Fund Plan
Public Hearing: On Monday, May 11, 2009, 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 2009–2011 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 10/01/09 through 09/30/11.
Wisconsin expects to receive approximately $85 million annually of Child Care and Development Funds and additional funds under the American Recovery and Investment Act. Funds will be used to help low income families, working or preparing for work, to pay for child care under the Wisconsin Works (W-2) program, and to provide grants to improve the quality of child care programs and services. In addition, funding will be used to pay for scholarships and support for child care workers, to pay for licensing staff, to support child care resource and referral services, to support technical assistance for child care providers, and to develop and implement a quality rating system. 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) Bureau of Early Childhood Education is responsible for its administration.
Opportunity for Public Comment: After April 16, interested parties can access the 2009-2011 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 11 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 2009-2011 State CCDF Draft Plan or any questions about the web page location to Gabe Blood by e-mail at
gabrielle.blood@wi.gov or contact her at: Bureau of Early Childhood Education, Division of Early Care and Education, Department of Children and Families, PO Box 8916, Madison, WI 53708-8916, 608.267.2081. All comments must be received no later than 5/11/09. Specific accommodation requests for the Public Hearing must be made to Gabe Blood prior to 5/1/09. Text phone users can contact Ms. Blood through WTRS (dial 711).
