10:15-1.2 Definitions

The following words and terms, when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. "Accessible" means the parent is able, by public or private transportation, to get to and from the child care provider, taking into consideration the age and any special needs of the child(ren). "Administrative review" means a review by members of a panel appointed by the CCR&R of a disputed matter initiated at the designated child care entity by a parent in receipt of non-entitlement child care services. "Affordable child care arrangements" means those child care arrangements which do not exceed the DHS maximum child care reimbursement rates. In addition, parent co-payment fees shall not exceed the DHS co-payment schedule for subsidized child care services. "Agency" means a designated entity in each county contracting with the DFD for the delivery of services to participants of subsidized employment directed activities. "Appropriate child care" means the child care provider is open for the hours and days the parent would need child care in order to comply with work requirements and the provider is able and willing to provide child care services including addressing any special needs of the child(ren), and meets DCF requirements set forth at N.J.A.C. 3A:52 and 3A:54. "Approved home" or "approved home provider" means a child care provider not registered pursuant to the Family Day Care Provider Registration Act (see N.J.S.A. 30:5B-16 et seq. and N.J.A.C. 3A:54), whose home has been evaluated and authorized for payment through the DHS child care services programs, using the Self-Arranged Care Inspection and Interview Checklist (see N.J.A.C. 10:15- 2.4(a)10) and having the prospective approved home provider and all members of the household who are 14 years of age and older pass a Child Abuse Record Information (CARI) background check. "ARC" means the CP&P Adoption Resource Center. "ARCC" means the At-Risk Child Care funding stream for the New Jersey Cares for Kids program. "At-risk" means working low-income families whose income upon entry into the program is at or below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), which are published annually in the Federal Register. "BARA" means the Bureau of Administrative Review and Appeals in the DFD. "Caregiver" means an individual who is at least 18 years of age who provides child care services in his or her home directly to an eligible child on a person-to-person basis and whose home has been evaluated for health and safety purposes. "Caretaker family" means the person(s) providing the substitute care setting for a protective services child(ren) identified by the CP&P, including but not limited to foster care. "Case manager (CM)" means the CSSA staff responsible for coordinating services and monitoring the participation of individuals in WFNJ. "Categories of care" means licensed health care centers, school-age child care programs, registered family child care, approved home care, in-home care, the CP&P in-home care, before and/or after- school care, and summer camp. "CCDBG" means the Child Care Development Block Grant funding stream for the New Jersey Cares for Kids program. "Center-based child care provider" means any person owning or legally responsible for operating a licensed child care center. "Child and Adult Care Food Program" means that program administered by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture which provides reimbursement to registered family child care home providers and licensed child care centers and school-age child care programs. The program is intended to improve nutritional intake in the diets of young children by serving healthy, well-balanced meals in child care settings. "Child care agency" means the child care resource and referral agency in each county which administers subsidized child care programs. "Child care center" means any facility, by whatever name known, which is maintained for the care, development or supervision of six or more children under 13 years of age who attend for less than 24 hours a day, and licensed by the DHS Office of Licensing. "Child Care Development Fund (CCDF)" means the funds which pay for the child care programs conducted under the provisions of the Child Care and Development Block Grant, as amended. (The CCDF replaces the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990.) "Child Care Resource and Referral" means the system established to provide comprehensive consumer education, child care consultation and referral services to parents, child care providers, employers and the general public. "Child care resource and referral agency (CCR&R)" means the agency under contract by the DHS, through the DFD, to administer child care programs and services in a particular county or counties. "Child care services" means child care services pursuant to this chapter which provide day care for those recipients of State subsidized employment programs. "Child protective services (CPS)" means services on behalf of any child, under age 19, considered at risk of abuse, neglect, or exploitation; or found to be abused, neglected, exploited or abandoned, as identified by the CP&P. The term, unless otherwise specified, includes services provided to children in out-of-home placements under the supervision of the CP&P. (CPS was formerly known as Protective Services.) "Co-payment" means a portion of the family income that is paid by the eligible parent toward the cost of child care. The amount of the required co-payment is based on the family's annual gross income level, family size, hours of care needed, and number of children in care. "CP&P" means the Division of Child Protection and Permanency in the Department of Children and Families. "CSSA" means the county social service agency or the county board of social services in the respective county. "DCF" means the New Jersey Department of Children and Families. "DFD" or "Division" means the Division of Family Development in the New Jersey Department of Human Services, which is responsible for the administration of child care. "DFD contracted centers" means those licensed child care centers that maintain a contract with the DFD to provide child care services to an identified population. Also referred to as "contracted centers." "DHS" means the New Jersey Department of Human Services. "Discretionary funds" means the funds authorized under section 658B of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9858 et seq. The discretionary funds were formerly referred to as the Child Care and Development Block Grant Funds. "Early Childhood Development Program" means a program of services that are intended to provide an environment that enhances the educational, cognitive, social, cultural, emotional, and physical development of children, and which is not intended to serve as a substitute for compulsory academic programs. "Eligible child" means a child who: 1. Is under 13 years of age and resides with a family that meets income eligibility and participation requirements as stipulated in this chapter; 2. Is under 19 years of age and is physically or mentally incapable of caring for himself or herself (that is, a "special needs" child); or 3. Receives child protective services from the CP&P. "Fair hearing" means a formal procedure through which a TANF recipient may appeal an adverse action or decision rendered through the WFNJ and TCC programs regarding eligibility for receipt of child care support services, in accordance with N.J.A.C. 10:15-2.4(a)18. "Family child care provider" means a person who provides child care services for fewer than 24 hours per day per child, as a sole caregiver or a caregiver with an assistant or an alternate caregiver in a private residence other than the child's residence. "Foster home" or "foster care" means a type of out of home placement in a private family residence with a family approved by the DCF to care for children whose parents are unable or unwilling to provide appropriate care for them and for whose care the foster family is reimbursed. "FPL" means the Federal Poverty Level, as defined annually in the Federal Register by the United States Department of Health and Human Services in accordance with 42 U.S.C. § 9902(2). "Full-time employment" means, for child care eligibility, employment that totals 30 or more hours per week. "Full-time school or training" means for child care eligibility, either 12 or more credit hours per term or the equivalent number of Continuing Education Units (CEUs) at a college, university or job training organization or nine or more credit hours or the equivalent number of CEUs during the summer semester. "In-home child care provider" means an individual who provides child care services in the child's own home for fewer than 24 hours per day. "In loco parentis" means the status of those individuals who are serving as the primary caretaker without legal confirmation for the child(ren) on behalf of whom voucher(s) are requested. These individuals are considered in loco parentis if the parent(s) of the child(ren) are not residing within New Jersey and the child(ren) reside with these individuals on a full-time basis. "Incapacitated parent" means a parent/applicant who has a permanent physical or mental defect, illness or impairment which is supported by medical evidence and/or recorded testimony of a licensed medical health care professional, and which shall be of such a debilitating nature as to reduce substantially or eliminate his or her ability to care for the eligible child(ren). "Low income for application purposes" means families with annual gross incomes for the family size at or below 150 percent of the FPL for a family of the same size. "Low income for mandatory and matching funds and discretionary funds" means families with annual gross incomes for the family size at or below 200 percent of the FPL as published in the Federal Register for a family of the same size. "Mandatory and matching" means the funds that are mandated by the Child Care Development Fund for use for populations enrolled in WFNJ, TCC and At-Risk Child Care programs. "New Jersey Cares for Kids (NJCK) Child Care Program" means the child care voucher program funded primarily by the Child Care and Development Fund. Also known as NJCK Program. "Out of home placement" means a placement designed to provide a substitute family for a child who needs care outside his or her home for a temporary or extended period of time, as part of a CPS case management plan or services provided to CPS children residing with a para care provider. "Overpayment" is a payment that exceeds the amount of child care subsidy, for which the parent/applicant or child care provider was eligible. "Para care" is a service involving the placement of a child in a private family home by anyone other than CP&P, and which CP&P approves for payment after an approval process is completed. "Parent" means a parent by blood, marriage or adoption and also means a legal guardian, or any other person having responsibility for, or custody of, a child or standing in "loco parentis" (45 CFR 98.2 through 3.7). "Parent/applicant" means an individual who has applied for or receives assistance with child care services from any program described in these rules on behalf of an eligible child. "Parent/applicant/provider agreement (PAPA)" means the authorization issued by a child care resource and referral agency to the parent and the provider for child care services. "Participant" means anyone involved in one of the subsidized programs described in this manual. "Part-time employment" means, for child care eligibility, employment that totals less than 30 hours per week. "Pre-K Partners Planning Grants" means those grants designed to facilitate cooperative efforts among the Unified Child Care agencies, licensed centers, Head Start programs and eligible family child care providers in the 125 Early Childhood Program Aid (ECPA) districts as identified by the New Jersey Department of Education. "Provider" means the entity providing child care services. "Reasonable distance" means, in the case of a child care provider, that a provider is located within a distance that is en route from the parent's home and work activity and that the parent can get the child to care and then to the parent's work activity within 90 minutes. "Registered family child care provider" means a family child care provider registered pursuant to the Family Day Care Provider Registration Act rules (N.J.A.C. 3A:54). "Relative care" means a child care provider who is 18 years of age or older who provides child care services to children who are by blood relationship, marriage or court decree, the grandchild, great grandchild, sibling (if such provider lives in a separate residence), niece or nephew of such provider and complies with any applicable requirements that govern child care provided by the relative involved. "Sectarian organization or sectarian child care provider" means a religious organization or provider generally, not merely those of a specific religious character or that are affiliated with a church or synagogue who can provide proof that the organization is sectarian, such as incorporation as a nonprofit religious organization or tax exempt status as a religious organization. "Service eligibility period" means the period of child care services based on satisfying ongoing child care program eligibility criteria from the date child care services commence to the date that child care services end. "Special circumstances" means a situation has occurred in which care cannot be provided by a family member or responsible adult and payment for such care is not available through other sources and the agency determines that such care is essential because of any one or more of the following: 1. Serious physical, emotional, mental or cognitive conditions requiring child care as part of the treatment plan; or 2. When illness, death and/or other disruption in family living has created problems and, on the basis of social and/or medical diagnosis, child care is necessary. "Special needs child" means a child who is under the age of 19 who is physically or mentally incapable of self-care; or a child who has been identified through a written referral from a county social service agency, legal, medical, social service agency, emergency shelter, or public school which indicates that the child has a serious physical, emotional or mental, or cognitive condition and child care services are required as part of a treatment plan designed to stabilize or ameliorate the situation. A child of teen parents is also considered a special needs child. "Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)" means the Federal welfare reform program (N.J.A.C. 10:90) that replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children. "Transitional child care benefits" means extended subsidized child care for those WFNJ participants whose case has been closed due to earnings from employment. "Underpayment" means a payment that is less than the amount of child care subsidy which the parent/applicant or child care provider was eligible to receive. "Unsuitability of informal child care" means a provider who cannot meet the minimum requirements at "Very low income" means income at or below 150 percent of the Federal Poverty Level as modified by family size. (See Chapter Appendices.) "Voucher" means the child care form developed and produced by the DFD that the CCR&R issues to participating providers to record attendance and generate payments. "WFNJ work activity" means any activity approved by the CSSA that leads to employment. "Work First New Jersey/TANF Program" means the single New Jersey welfare reform program established pursuant to P.L. 1997, c. 13 (N.J.S.A. 44:10-34 et seq.), c. 14 (N.J.S.A. 44:10-44 et seq.), c. 37 (N.J.S.A. 44:10-71 et seq.), and c. 38 (N.J.S.A. 44:10-55 et seq.), which provides assistance to families with dependent children through the TANF Program. History HISTORY: Amended by R.2005 d.77, effective February 22, 2005. See: 36 N.J.R. 4882(a), 37 N.J.R. 630(c). Rewrote the section. Amended by R.2009 d.18, effective January 5, 2009. See: 40 N.J.R. 2637(b), 41 N.J.R. 226(b). In definitions "Administrative review" and "Voucher", substituted "CCR&R" for "UCCA"; in definitions "Child care agency" and "Parent/applicant/provider agreement (PAPA)", substituted "child care resource and referral" for "unified child care"; in definition "DYFS", substituted "Department of Children and Families" for "New Jersey Department of Human Services"; added definitions "Child care resource and referral agency (CCR&R)" and "DCF"; and deleted definitions "DO", "DYFS field office" and "Unified child care agency (UCCA)". Notice of readoption with technical changes. See: 48 N.J.R. 2807(a). Notice of readoption with technical change, effective August 21, 2023. See: 55 N.J.R. 1834(a). Annotations Notes Chapter Notes 2025