PRINTER'S NO. 1246
No. 1066 Session of 2003
INTRODUCED BY BROWNE, BARD, BEBKO-JONES, BELFANTI, CAPPELLI,
CAWLEY, CRAHALLA, CREIGHTON, CURRY, FABRIZIO, FRANKEL, GEIST,
GRUCELA, GRUITZA, HARHAI, HARHART, HERMAN, HORSEY, JAMES,
JOSEPHS, LAUGHLIN, LEACH, LEDERER, MANDERINO, MELIO, MUNDY,
O'NEILL, PETRARCA, PISTELLA, REICHLEY, ROSS, RUBLEY, SAINATO,
SOLOBAY, STABACK, STURLA, THOMAS, WALKO, WATSON, WHEATLEY AND
YOUNGBLOOD, APRIL 7, 2003
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH, APRIL 7, 2003
AN ACT
1 Establishing the Keystone Quality Certificate program for
2 certain child-care providers; and providing for the powers
3 and duties of the Department of Public Welfare.
4 The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
5 (1) The development of children into healthy and
6 productive adults begins at birth with parents as the first
7 teachers. Achieving the healthy development of children
8 involves a partnership of parents, extended families,
9 communities and child-care programs.
10 (2) Nearly 2,000,000 children, from birth through 12
11 years of age, live in this Commonwealth, of which nearly
12 900,000 are five years of age or younger.
13 (3) As society changes, an increasing number of children
14 are enrolled in child-care programs. Children can spend as
15 many hours in these programs prior to entering kindergarten
16 as they spend in school from kindergarten through 12th grade.
1 The quality of the experience in these programs has a
2 significant impact on whether children enter school ready to
3 succeed and ready to learn, master the basics of reading and
4 math and get along well with their peers and teachers.
5 (4) For working parents who choose a child day-care
6 program for their children, job commitment and productivity
7 are enhanced when their children are enrolled in worry-free,
8 child-care settings that are known to provide a safe, quality
9 environment.
10 (5) The purpose of this act is to recognize that
11 enhancing and improving quality in child-care programs will
12 foster healthy child development and assist the Commonwealth
13 in securing the educational and economic future of its entire
14 population.
15 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
16 hereby enacts as follows:
17 Section 1. Short title.
18 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Keystone
19 Quality Child Care Act.
20 Section 2. Definitions.
21 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
22 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
23 context clearly indicates otherwise:
24 "Child day-care center." A premises in which child day care
25 is provided simultaneously for seven or more children who are
26 not related to the provider, regardless of which article of the
27 act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known as the Public
28 Welfare Code, applies.
29 "Department." The Department of Public Welfare of the
30 Commonwealth.
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1 "Family day-care home." A home in which child day care is
2 provided at any one time for four, five or six children who are
3 not relatives of the provider and which is required to be
4 registered under the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known
5 as the Public Welfare Code.
6 "Fund." The Keystone Quality Fund established under this
7 act.
8 "Group child day-care home." The premises in which care is
9 provided at one time for:
10 (1) more than six but fewer than 16 older school-age
11 level children; or
12 (2) more than six but fewer than 13 children of another
13 age level who are unrelated to the operator.
14 The term includes a facility located in a residence or another
15 premises.
16 "Keystone Quality Certificate." The designation by the
17 Department of Public Welfare of a child-care provider that is
18 accredited by a recognized accrediting association.
19 "Recognized accrediting association." A national, regional
20 or State organization that has established an early childhood
21 accreditation program for the purpose of improving the quality
22 of child care through the use of research-based standards,
23 provided that accreditation program meets the following
24 criteria:
25 (1) Demonstrates fiscal and administrative capability
26 for administering an accreditation program.
27 (2) Establishes a program that has conducted a
28 sufficient number of post-pilot test accreditation visits.
29 (3) Contains a comprehensive self-evaluation that
30 includes parents, staff and program administrators and
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1 promotes self-improvement.
2 (4) Contains onsite peer review validators with academic
3 qualifications and formal training by the accreditation
4 group.
5 (5) Makes accreditation decisions with experts in the
6 field, after a review of all documentation and based on
7 standards and criteria established by the organization.
8 (6) Provides a maximum accreditation period of three
9 years with guidelines for a reaccreditation process and
10 annual reporting of improvements and other changes.
11 (7) Includes validators, training procedures and
12 instruments used in the process, which are evaluated for
13 reliability and validity on an ongoing basis.
14 (8) Includes administration policies and system
15 evaluation procedures that are in place to avoid conflicts of
16 interest and address issues such as deferred status,
17 withdrawal of accreditation, appeal processes and complaints.
18 (9) Includes program standards based on current research
19 about quality in child-care programs, which standards are
20 periodically reviewed and updated and must address the
21 following areas: staff qualifications, staff-child ratios and
22 group sizes, staff training and professional development,
23 administration, physical environment, health and safety,
24 nutrition and food service, parent/program relationship and
25 child development program.
26 "Secretary." The Secretary of Public Welfare of the
27 Commonwealth.
28 Section 3. Keystone Quality Certificate program.
29 (a) Keystone Quality Certificate designation by
30 department.--The department shall establish a procedure to
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1 confer the Keystone Quality Certificate and shall identify
2 recognized accrediting associations for use in conferring the
3 Keystone Quality Certificate and in implementing this act.
4 (b) Procedure.--
5 (1) An accrediting organization seeking to become a
6 recognized accrediting organization under this act shall make
7 application to the department for such designation in a
8 manner to be determined by the department.
9 (2) An accrediting association that has made application
10 to become a recognized accrediting association and has
11 received an adverse decision from the department shall have
12 the right to appeal that decision. All appeals shall be
13 governed by the general rules of administrative practice and
14 procedure for Commonwealth agencies.
15 (3) The Keystone Quality Certificate designation by the
16 department shall be provided to the Child-Care Information
17 Services agency or any successor agency that the department
18 uses to provide child-care information or resources and
19 referral services for parents, employers and the general
20 public. The Child-Care Information Services agency shall
21 provide the information about the Keystone Quality
22 Certificate designation of a child-care provider to parents,
23 employers and the general public.
24 (c) Promotion of designation.--The department shall promote
25 the Keystone Quality Certificate designation as an indicator of
26 quality in child care. The department shall encourage the Child-
27 Care Information Services agencies and county assistance offices
28 and any other relevant State governmental agencies or
29 contractors to promote the Keystone Quality Certificate
30 designation when providing information about child care.
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1 (d) Additional designations.--The department may establish
2 additional quality standards and develop quality designations to
3 be conferred on child-care programs that voluntarily meet those
4 standards.
5 Section 4. Funds to support quality improvements through
6 accreditation.
7 (a) General rule.--The department shall spend not less than
8 $2,000,000 of the annual Federally required quality set-aside
9 for child care as required through the Child Care and
10 Development Fund, or it successor programs, in support of a
11 competitive grant program to child-care providers to assist them
12 in attaining or continuing the Keystone Quality Certificate
13 designation. Should additional Federal funds be made available
14 to support improvements in quality in child care, the department
15 shall also use such funds in accordance with this section.
16 (b) Qualifying child-care providers.--The designated funds
17 shall be used to assist child-care providers that are not
18 currently accredited by a recognized accrediting association to
19 become accredited in order to obtain the Keystone Quality
20 Certificate. The designated funds shall also be used to assist
21 child-care providers that are accredited by a recognized
22 accrediting association to maintain such accreditation.
23 (c) Use of funds.--Funds may be used to support the purchase
24 of equipment and supplies, as well as personnel, necessary to
25 meet or continue Keystone Quality Certificate standards. Funds
26 may also be used for making site improvements, provided that the
27 improvements are necessary to achieve or continue the Keystone
28 Quality Certificate designation. Funds shall be made available
29 by the department in such amounts as shall substantially assist
30 providers in achieving the Keystone Quality Certificate
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1 designation.
2 (d) Technical assistance.--The department shall provide for
3 technical assistance to assist child-care providers in attaining
4 accreditation by a recognized accrediting association or
5 continuing their accreditation status. The assistance may
6 include payments in support of mentor teachers and other
7 professionals to assist with the achievement of the Keystone
8 Quality Certificate designation.
9 (e) Applicability of program.--The Keystone Quality
10 Certificate program shall be available to child-care centers,
11 group day-care homes and family day-care homes that meet the
12 following conditions:
13 (1) Have signed agreements with a Child-Care Information
14 Services agency indicating a willingness to accept children
15 participating in the Commonwealth's subsidized child-care
16 program.
17 (2) Operate at least five and one-half hours per day, 12
18 months per year.
19 Section 5. Funds to support Keystone Quality Certificate
20 recipients.
21 (a) General rule.--The department shall provide additional
22 support and incentives to child-care programs with Keystone
23 Quality Certificate designations.
24 (b) Amount of funding.--
25 (1) For a child-care program whose average annual
26 enrollment of children receiving child-care subsidy through
27 the Child Care Works subsidized child-care program is equal
28 to or less than 10% upon initial attainment of the Keystone
29 Quality Certificate and upon reaccreditation by a recognized
30 accrediting association, the department shall provide that
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1 Keystone Quality Certificate child-care provider with a bonus
2 payment of at least:
3 (i) One thousand five hundred dollars for a family
4 day-care home.
5 (ii) Two thousand four hundred dollars for a group
6 day-care home.
7 (iii) Five thousand dollars for a child-care center
8 with an average enrollment between 13 and 25 children.
9 (iv) Fifteen thousand dollars for a child-care
10 center with an average enrollment between 26 and 99
11 children.
12 (v) Twenty thousand dollars for a child-care center
13 with an average enrollment of 100 or more children.
14 The support is to be adjusted annually in accordance with the
15 Consumer Price Index.
16 (2) Child-care programs whose average annual enrollment
17 of children receiving child-care subsidy through the Child
18 Care Works subsidized child-care program is greater than 10%
19 shall receive an additional incentive payment per child equal
20 to 10% more than 100% of the market rate for child care in
21 each county of this Commonwealth, taking into account the age
22 of the child and the child-care setting. The department shall
23 determine the rate biannually and provider payment rates for
24 Keystone Quality Certificates shall be adjusted accordingly.
25 (3) A child-care program receiving a bonus pursuant to
26 paragraph (1) may be eligible for a rate supplement pursuant
27 to paragraph (2) beginning 12 months after the bonus payment
28 is made, provided the program meets the requirements of
29 paragraph (2) with respect to enrollment of subsidized
30 children.
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1 (c) Expenditures.--The purpose of expenditures under this
2 section shall be to assist child-care providers to maintain
3 quality standards achieved through accreditation and to ensure
4 that high quality child-care services designated by the Keystone
5 Quality Certificate are accessible to low-income children.
6 Section 6. Annual report to General Assembly.
7 The department shall submit an annual report to the General
8 Assembly on the department's activities under this act. The
9 report shall include, but not be limited to, the total number of
10 Keystone Quality Certificates granted, the total number and
11 dollar amount of program bonuses, the total number of children
12 served and the total number of subsidized children served. The
13 report shall provide information on each of the activities
14 supported through this act and the impact of each of the
15 activities on providers and children in this Commonwealth.
16 Section 7. Effective date.
17 This act shall take effect in 180 days.
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