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 department presented to the Minnesota Association of Financial Assistance Supervisors (MAFAS) once, the Minnesota Financial Worker and Case Aide Association (MFWCAA) once, and consulted with several workgroups at least once. Local units of government (including county managers, supervisors and workers) were also included as recipients of a state survey that was sent to over 8000 recipients to provide input on the development of the plan. Local government staff were also notified of the opportunity to attend the public hearing events. Feedback from local agencies was used to inform written responses. a. Describe how the Lead Agency consulted with the State Advisory Council or similar coordinating body: The lead agency works very closely with members of the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet on the development and implementation of the CCDF plan. Lead agency staff met virtually with members of the State Advisory Council once to present an overview of the plan and gather feedback. Feedback from the State Advisory Council was used to inform written responses. Advisory Council members also received the CCDF community survey and were invited to the public hearing. b. Describe, if applicable, how the Lead Agency consulted with Indian Tribes(s) or Tribal organizations(s) within the State: The department works closely with Tribal early childhood leaders through a grant contract with Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe to operate the Minnesota Tribal Resources for Early Childhood Care (MNTRECC). The MNTRECC planning team has membership from all 11 of Minnesota’s federal recognized Tribes. The Lead Agency meets quarterly with the planning team on implementation issues. The Lead Agency consulted with the planning team on the development of plan at a meeting specific to the plan. All planning team members also received the engagement survey and were asked to also forward on the survey to Tribal leadership for input on plan development. MNTRECC planning team members and tribal leadership were also invited to the public hearing. 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: The department engaged multiple other community members in the plan development process. This included the state departments of Education and Health via email, Head Start programs via a one-time virtual meeting, non-profit agencies including advocates, current grantees, private foundations, and parents via one-time virtual meetings. The department also engaged and consulted with child care providers in every region of the state. These engagements occurred through a combination of email, an engagement survey, and one-time face-to-face meetings, including the required public hearings. 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: 4/23/2024; 4/25/2024 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: 3/18/2024 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 noticeGeneral notices were shared at multiple meetings and through our division listserv to notify about the public hearing. People who completed the engagement survey were re-directed upon completion to the department’s public website ((https://mn.gov/dhs/partners- and-providers/program-overviews/child-care-and-early-education/child-care- development-fund/) with hearing dates, WebEx links and contact information. The public hearing announcements mentioned the availability of interpreter services upon request. Two email invitations (April 5,, 2024 and April 19, 2024) were sent to our child care partners, all licensed and certified child care providers, and other interested parties. Hearings were recorded and posted to the department’s public website; captions were included on both recordings. v. Describe how the approach to the public hearing was inclusive of all geographic regions of the State or Territory: Email lists included all licensed providers statewide, and community and representatives of child care associations, community partners, contractors and consultants, state agencies, school districts, higher education, advisory committees, counties and Tribes. All geographic regions of the state receive notifications of the public hearing. 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.): Posted as an accessible PDF to the department’s public website. vii. Describe how the information provided by the public was taken into consideration regarding the provision of child care services under this Plan: State staff conducted engagement opportunities with multiple groups as part of the writing process as well as a comprehensive survey that received over 1000 responses. Feedback was shared internally and taken under consideration by assigned staff for inclusion into the current plan or for consideration for uses of additional funding opportunities or plan amendments 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. https://dcyf.mn.gov/child-care-and-development-fund 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: Engagement survey, public hearing invitation, direct communication by staff about any amendments to the plan with a link to the amendment summary document. ii. [x] Working with child care resource and referral agencies. Describe: Engagement survey, public hearing invitation, direct communication by staff about any amendments to the plan with a link to the amendment summary document. 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: Engagement survey, public hearing invitation, direct communication by staff about any amendments to the plan with a link to the amendment summary document. vi. [x] Working with Statewide afterschool networks or similar coordinating entities for out-of-school time. Describe: Engagement survey, public hearing invitation, direct communication by staff about any amendments to the plan with a link to the amendment summary document. vii. [x] Direct communication with the child care workforce. Describe: Engagement survey, public hearing invitation, direct communication by staff about any amendments to the plan with a link to the amendment summary document. 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.