1.3 Consultation in the Development of the CCDF Plan

The Lead Agency is responsible for developing the CCDF Plan, and consultation with and meaningful input and feedback from a wide range of representatives is critical for CCDF programs to continually adapt to the changing needs of families, child care programs, and the workforce. Consultation involves meeting with or otherwise obtaining input from an appropriate agency in the development of the State or Territory CCDF Plan. As part of the Plan development process, Lead Agencies must consult with the following: (1) Appropriate representatives of general-purpose local government. General purpose local governments are defined by the U.S. Census at https://www2.census.gov/govs/cog/g12_org.pdf. (2) The State Advisory Council (SAC) on Early Childhood Education and Care (pursuant to 642B(b)(I)(A)(i) of the Head Start Act) or similar coordinating body pursuant to 98.14(a)(1)(vii). (3) Tribe(s) or Tribal organization(s) within the State. This consultation should be done in a timely manner and at the option of the Tribe(s) or Tribal organization(s). 1.3.1 Consultation efforts in CCDF Plan development Describe the Lead Agency’s consultation efforts in the development of the CCDF Plan, including how and how often the consultation occurred. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with appropriate representatives of general- purpose local government: The Lead Agency consulted with representatives of general- purpose local government through staff at the Great Portland Council of Governments and Portland City Government. The CCDF administrator had meetings with staff to discuss elements of the state plan and the Department’s child care goals and work to support children, families, and the early care and education workforce. Local government staff shared about their work to support local child care programs and families through federal COVID-relief funds and their goals and work ahead. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with the State Advisory Council or similar coordinating body: The State Advisory Council is the Children’s Cabinet Early Childhood Advisory Council (CCECAC). The Lead Agency has representation on the council. Coordination between the Lead Agency’s CCDF Plan and the CCECAC’s strategic plan, occurs through the ongoing monthly meeting to ensure alignment on increasing access to affordable quality early care and to recruit, prepare, and retain a diverse early childhood workforce. The details of the draft plan were presented to the CCECAC prior to the public comment period for feedback. In addition, input and feedback is coordinated regularly on the market rate survey and the cost modeling work. b. Describe, if applicable, how the Lead Agency consulted with Indian Tribes(s) or Tribal organizations(s) within the State: Each of the five Maine Tribal CCDF administrators are contacted on a regular basis by the State Administrator with updates to and invitations concerning child care policies and rules in Maine. The five CCDF tribes recognized in Maine are the Aroostook Band of Micmac Indians, the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, Penobscot Nation, Passamaquoddy Tribe at Indian Township and Passamaquoddy Tribe at Pleasant Point. Copies of the CCDF Plan Preprint were sent to each of the tribal administrators in March 2024 with an invitation for discussion and recommendations for the State Plan. The Lead Agency met with the CCDF Administrator for the Houlton Band of Maliseet's in late March and corresponded with CCDF administrators from the other tribes. The Lead Agency sent copies of the drafted CCDF State Plan and public hearing notice in May 2024 to each of the tribal administrators. Correspondence followed with the CCDF Administrator for Passamaquoddy Pleasant Point. The Lead Agency did not receive comments or recommendations for the plan from the other tribes at that time. Background on the relationship building between the Lead Agency and Tribes in Maine: In May of 2023, the CCDF Administrator was invited to meet with the five CCDF Tribal Administrators during the Onsite Visit for Tribal Nationals in Maine along with ACF representatives. The goal was to share updates and barriers/successes from all. Communication between individual administrators was strengthened at that meeting and has continued based on the Tribal goals. The CCDF Administrator meets individually each year with a Tribal CCDF Administrator to discuss any updates or concerns regarding their tribe’s early care and education systems. Several topics this past year included health and safety standards, data management systems, and professional learning and training. c. Identify other entities, agencies, or organizations consulted on the development of the CCDF Plan (e.g., representatives from the child care workforce, or statewide afterschool networks) and describe those consultation efforts: MRTQ PDN, partners with the Lead Agency on early care and education providers professional development and the Quality Rating and Improvement Scale (QRIS), also collaborated extensively with the Lead Agency on the development of the CCDF plan. Maine’s ECE Business Collaboratory Team was consulted on a variety of efforts where business and workforce were the key elements. Items included the market rate survey, cost modeling, and Maine’s Child Care Employer Toolkit. 1.3.2 Public hearing process Lead Agencies must hold at least one public hearing in the State or Territory, with sufficient Statewide or Territory-wide distribution of notice prior to such a hearing to enable the public to comment on the provision of child care services under the CCDF Plan. Describe the Statewide or Territory-wide public hearing process held to provide the public with an opportunity to comment on the provision of child care services under this Plan. i. Date of the public hearing: 5/31/2024 Reminder: Must be no earlier than January 1, 2024. If more than one public hearing was held, enter one date (e.g., the date of the first hearing, the most recent hearing date, or any hearing date that demonstrates this requirement). ii. Date of notice of public hearing: 5/10/2024 iii. Was the notice of public hearing posted publicly at least 20 calendar days prior to the date of the public hearing? [x] Yes. [ ] No. If no, describe: iv. Describe how the public was notified about the public hearing, including outreach in other languages, information on interpretation services being available, etc. Include specific website links if used to provide noticeThe Lead Agency posted the notice on their website and in the newspaper, the CCDF administrator sent the notice and draft plan to stakeholder groups, and paper copies were sent through regular USPS upon request. While we didn’t conduct outreach in multiple languages, we did offer services/accommodations for anyone that requested support to access the public hearing, with a request to contact us ahead of the hearing. "The Department requests that any interested party requiring special arrangements to attend the hearing contact the agency person listed above before May 30, 2024 at 1:00 p.m." https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/support-for-families/child-care/paying-for- child-care https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/sites/maine.gov.dhhs/files/inline- files/CCDF%20State%20Plan%20Public%20Notice%20May%202024.pdf v. Describe how the approach to the public hearing was inclusive of all geographic regions of the State or Territory: The Lead Agency held a statewide public hearing via Zoom. Members of the public could register. vi. Describe how the content of the Plan was made available to the public in advance of the public hearing (e.g., the Plan was made available in other languages, in multiple formats, etc.): The Lead Agency posted the notice on their website and in the newspaper, the CCDF administrator sent the notice and draft plan to stakeholder groups, and paper copies were sent through regular USPS upon request. The Plan was not made available in multiple languages. It was made available electronically and paper copies were available by request. vii. Describe how the information provided by the public was taken into consideration regarding the provision of child care services under this Plan: The Lead Agency reviewed each comment and responded to every individual or group who submitted comments. Edits were incorporated based on the validity and guidelines of both Federal and State policies. There were 25 commenters on the Plan, which included individual parents and providers and groups organized together. For example one commenter included combined comments from the Maine Head Start Directors Association, the Family Child Care Association of Maine, and the Maine Association for the Education of Young Children. Some commenters expressed gratitude for the multiple ways the Plan was shared and sent out to different stakeholder groups and for increasing eligibility for families to 125% of State Median Income with state funds. Some commenters requested increased engagement in Plan development and child care policy development and decisions. The Lead Agency responded, "The Department will work with the Children's Cabinet Early Childhood Advisory Council (CCECAC) and stakeholders to continue to refine and improve ongoing engagement strategies." We are working on a new communication and stakeholder engagement plan for the next two years to increase our collaboration and coordination. Several comments focused on requests for the Lead Agency to implement new federal rules, including paying by enrollment with prospective payments, lowering family copayments, paying the market rate, and having online documentation submission. The Lead Agency responded by sharing plans to implement specific rules and the current work to implement a new child care management system for the Child Care Affordability Program in Maine. We have created a document that outlines all the requests to change specific policies and will be using that to guide our stakeholder engagement over the next year, to follow up with specific groups and have discussions on each of their requests and comments. 1.3.3 Public availability of final Plan, amendments, and waivers Lead Agencies must make the submitted and approved final Plan, any approved Plan amendments, and any approved requests for temporary waivers publicly available on a website. a. Provide the website link to where the Plan, any Plan amendments, and waivers (if applicable) are available. Note: A Plan amendment is required if the website address where the Plan is posted changes. This website is where Maine posts CCDF State Plans and has added the 5 amended versions of the FY2022-2024 Plan. https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ocfs/support-for-families/child-care/paying-for-child-care b. Describe any other strategies that the Lead Agency uses to make submitted and approved CCDF Plan and approved Plan amendments available to the public. Check all that apply and describe the strategies below, including any relevant website links as examples. i. [x] Working with advisory committees. Describe: The Lead Agency regularly updates the Children's Cabinet Early Childhood Advisory Council (CCECAC) on updates and changes to the CCDF Maine State Plan, sending the approved CCDF Plan and approved Plan amendments to the council. ii. [ ] Working with child care resource and referral agencies. Describe: iii. [ ] Providing translation in other languages. Describe: iv. [ ] Sharing through social media (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, email). Describe: v. [x] Providing notification to key constituents (e.g., parent and family groups, provider groups, advocacy groups, foundations, and businesses). Describe: The Lead Agency regularly updates the Family Child Care Association of Maine, YMCA Alliance of Northern New England, Maine Association for the Education of Young Children, and Maine Head Start Directors Association, and Right from the Start Coalition on updates and changes to the CCDF Maine State Plan, sending the approved CCDF Plan and approved Plan amendments to key constituents. vi. [x] Working with Statewide afterschool networks or similar coordinating entities for out-of-school time. Describe: Through the partnership with MRTQ PDN, the Maine Afterschool Network is represented as a partner of MRTQ PDN and receives the approved CCDF Plan and approved Plan amendment directly. vii. [x] Direct communication with the child care workforce. Describe: The Lead Agency sends updates through the OCFS Listserv and encourages members of the public to sign up to receive communications through the Listserv. Child care providers and educators receive direct communication through the OCFS Listserv and the MRTQ PDN weekly newsletter, that included the approved Plan and approved Plan amendments. viii. [ ] Other. Describe: 2 Child and Family Eligibility and Enrollment and Continuity of Care Stable and reliable child care arrangements facilitate job stability for parents and healthy development of children. CCDF eligibility and enrollment policies can contribute to these goals. Policies and procedures that create barriers to families accessing CCDF, like inaccessible subsidy applications and onerous reporting requirements, interrupt a parent’s ability to work and may deter eligible families from participating in CCDF. To address these concerns, Lead Agencies must provide children with a minimum of 12 months between eligibility determinations, limit reporting requirements during the 12-month period, and ensure eligibility determination and redetermination processes do not interrupt a parent’s work or school. In this section, Lead Agencies will identify how they define eligible children and families and how the Lead Agency’s eligibility and enrollment policies support access for eligible children and families.