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CAPS Policy – Family Fees No.: CAPS/00-9 Effective Date: 10/01/2016 Revised: 10/06/2025 Revision Effective: 10/06/2025

CAPS Policy Manual

Page 54 of 109 LEGAL AUTHORITY: Federal Register: 45 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) 98 and 99

Cross Reference/See Also: CAPS Application Process Policy (CAPS/00-4), CAPS Family Unit Policy (CAPS/00-5), CAPS Eligibility Requirements Policy (CAPS/00-6), CAPS Annual Redetermination Policy (CAPS/00-14)

Note: Definitions of words or phrases in bold are located in Definitions and Acronyms. Only the first occurrence of the defined words or phrases are bolded.

9 FAMILY FEES

Purpose Families who are eligible for child care services may be required to pay a portion of the cost of child care through family assessed fees. The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines for determining who must pay a family fee, how fees are assessed, and the special circumstances that may affect family fees.

Scope This policy applies to all employees of the Department of Early Care and Learning (DECAL), all parties responsible for the administration of the Childcare and Parent Services (CAPS) program, parents, and child care providers who receive subsidies administered by DECAL on behalf of parents.

Family Fee Overview 9.3.1 The CAPS program assesses family fees to allow families to share in the cost of their child care expenses. Family fees are based on a percentage of a family’s annual gross applicable income. The assessed fee is a family fee for all children in care, not a fee for each child. It is paid by the parent directly to the child care provider.

9.3.2 Family fees are calculated at the time of initial eligibility, at redetermination, and when a change is reported to family size, income, or number of children in care. The fee may be reduced but will not increase during the eligibility period. Therefore, the parent is encouraged to report changes in the family’s income and number of people residing in the family unit. The fee can increase, however, at redetermination, depending on family size and income.

When Family Fees Are Assessed 9.4.1 Family fees are assessed for CAPS services: • At initial application • At redetermination • When there is a change in the family size, the family’s income, or the number of children in care

9.4.2 Eligibility system functionality automatically assesses the family fee (refer to the Family Fee Assessment Chart – Appendix D).

9.4.3 If there are multiple children with child care scholarships in the family unit, the family fee will be distributed among the scholarships.

9.4.4 If there are multiple child care scholarships during the same service week for the same child, the family fee will be applied on all active scholarships, except part time scholarships.

When Family Fees Are Not Assessed 9.5.1 Family fees are not assessed for child care services when one of the following applies: • Children who are in Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) custody