Page 107

July 1, 2026

106 month when a child may not be attending the child care provider but is still enrolled, such as weekends or holidays.

Gaps between authorizations may occur when: • Child care is not needed • The child is not enrolled • The parent does not request an authorization • The parent requests not to have an authorization for a specific time period

If the parent requests a new authorization after there has been a gap of one (1) calendar month or more between authorizations, the agency worker must complete an authorization assessment and the authorized hours must be based on the assessment results (see 17.1.1).

Example 1 (Weekends): It is October 20 and Jeanette is requesting an authorization to a new provider for her child, Sonja. Sonja’s last day at Busy Bees Child Care will be Friday, November 13, and she will be starting at Chicks and Chickadees Child Care on Monday, November 16. The agency worker could either: a) end the authorization to Busy Bees on Saturday, November 14, and start the new authorization to Chicks and Chickadees beginning Sunday, November 15; or b) end the authorization to Busy Bees on Sunday, November 15, and start the new authorization to Chicks and Chickadees beginning Monday, November 16. Regardless of the method, the agency worker includes the weekend in authorization begin and end dates to avoid a gap during an eligibility period.

Example 2 (Holiday): Dee has an authorization for her child, Nina. In November, Nina will not be attending the child care provider on Thanksgiving Day and the day after Thanksgiving because Dee will not be working. However, the authorization should continue through November with no gaps because Nina is still enrolled and the time period is shorter than a calendar month.

Example 3 (Spring Break): Allan has an authorization for his school age child, Jolene. Spring break is the week of March 15 – March 20. Jolene does not need child care the week of March 15 – 20 because Allan is taking time off to spend with her. The authorization should continue through March with no gaps because Jolene is still enrolled, and the break is shorter than a calendar month. The agency worker does not end the authorization on the Friday of the last day of school and re-start the authorization on the Monday that school starts again.