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In situations where a hardship authorization is granted due to circumstances regarding the child (for example, the child is expelled from their current child care provider for behavior issues), all other children on the case may also change providers if those children were attending the same child care provider as the child receiving the hardship authorization.

The local agency will determine the duration of the authorization for the new child care provider, depending on the circumstances and point in time in the current month that the hardship is requested. Hardship authorizations do not need to be for a full month.

Local agencies must document every case reviewed for a possible hardship authorization on the CSAW Hardship page. See the CSAW User Guide – Authorizations for more information about this page. A hardship authorization must also be documented in case comments (see 12.2).

This section last updated 12/1/2022

Section 17.4 Excessive Unexplained Absences Parents must report within 10 calendar days if their child has not attended their authorized child care provider for 20 consecutive calendar days (see 10.1). Child care providers are required to report to the local agency when a child in subsidized care has not attended within the previous 30 calendar days (see 14.8).

If the child has excessive unexplained absences, the agency worker must review the authorization with the parent to determine if the authorized hours are accurate. Upon receiving the notification from the child care provider that the child has not attended for 30 calendar days, the local agency must make at least two (2) attempts to contact the parent using different methods before ending the authorization. The local agency must document these attempts in case comments (see 12.2). The various methods to contact the parent include, but are not limited to: • Phone calls • Parent Portal messages • Manual notices

If a provider is found to have received payment for a child who was absent for more than 30 calendar days, agency workers must create a referral and submit it to the Child Care Fraud Mailbox at DCFMBchildcarefraud@wisconsin.gov. If the provider continues to receive payment after the child has not attended for 30 calendar days, the department may establish a forfeiture or provider overpayment for care not provided.

This section last updated 10/1/2023