PRINTER'S NO. 990
No. 797 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY BROWNE, BOSCOLA, RAFFERTY, ORIE, PILEGGI,
WONDERLING, ARMSTRONG AND C. WILLIAMS, JUNE 22, 2005
REFERRED TO AGING AND YOUTH, JUNE 22, 2005
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.
17 The quality of the experience in these programs has a
18 significant impact on whether children enter school ready to
1 succeed and ready to learn, master the basics of reading and
2 math and get along well with their peers and teachers.
3 (4) For working parents who choose a child day-care
4 program for their children, job commitment and productivity
5 are enhanced when their children are enrolled in worry-free,
6 child-care settings that are known to provide a safe, quality
7 environment.
8 (5) The purpose of this act is to recognize that
9 enhancing and improving quality in child-care programs will
10 foster healthy child development and assist the Commonwealth
11 in securing the educational and economic future of its entire
12 population.
13 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
14 hereby enacts as follows:
15 Section 1. Short title.
16 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Keystone
17 Quality Child Care Act.
18 Section 2. Definitions.
19 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
20 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
21 context clearly indicates otherwise:
22 "Child day-care center." A premises in which child day care
23 is provided simultaneously for seven or more children who are
24 not related to the provider, regardless of which article of the
25 act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known as the Public
26 Welfare Code, applies.
27 "Department." The Department of Public Welfare of the
28 Commonwealth.
29 "Family day-care home." A home in which child day care is
30 provided at any one time for four, five or six children who are
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1 not relatives of the provider and which is required to be
2 registered under the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known
3 as the Public Welfare Code.
4 "Group child day-care home." The premises in which care is
5 provided at one time for:
6 (1) more than six but fewer than 16 older school-age
7 level children; or
8 (2) more than six but fewer than 13 children of another
9 age level who are unrelated to the operator.
10 The term includes a facility located in a residence or another
11 premises.
12 "Keystone Quality Certificate." The designation by the
13 Department of Public Welfare of a child-care provider that is
14 accredited by a recognized accrediting association.
15 "Recognized accrediting association." A national, regional
16 or State organization that has established an early childhood
17 accreditation program for the purpose of improving the quality
18 of child care through the use of research-based standards,
19 provided that accreditation program meets the following
20 criteria:
21 (1) Demonstrates fiscal and administrative capability
22 for administering an accreditation program.
23 (2) Establishes a program that has conducted a
24 sufficient number of post-pilot test accreditation visits.
25 (3) Contains a comprehensive self-evaluation that
26 includes parents, staff and program administrators and
27 promotes self-improvement.
28 (4) Contains onsite peer review validators with academic
29 qualifications and formal training by the accreditation
30 group.
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1 (5) Makes accreditation decisions with experts in the
2 field, after a review of all documentation and based on
3 standards and criteria established by the organization.
4 (6) Provides a maximum accreditation period of three
5 years with guidelines for a reaccreditation process and
6 annual reporting of improvements and other changes.
7 (7) Includes validators, training procedures and
8 instruments used in the process, which are evaluated for
9 reliability and validity on an ongoing basis.
10 (8) Includes administration policies and system
11 evaluation procedures that are in place to avoid conflicts of
12 interest and address issues such as deferred status,
13 withdrawal of accreditation, appeal processes and complaints.
14 (9) Includes program standards based on current research
15 about quality in child-care programs, which standards are
16 periodically reviewed and updated and must address the
17 following areas: staff qualifications, staff-child ratios and
18 group sizes, staff training and professional development,
19 administration, physical environment, health and safety,
20 nutrition and food service, parent/program relationship and
21 child development program.
22 "Secretary." The Secretary of Public Welfare of the
23 Commonwealth.
24 Section 3. Keystone Quality Certificate program.
25 (a) Keystone Quality Certificate designation by
26 department.--The department shall establish a procedure to
27 confer the Keystone Quality Certificate and shall identify
28 recognized accrediting associations for use in conferring the
29 Keystone Quality Certificate and in implementing this act.
30 (b) Procedure.--
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1 (1) An accrediting organization seeking to become a
2 recognized accrediting organization under this act shall make
3 application to the department for such designation in a
4 manner to be determined by the department.
5 (2) An accrediting association that has made application
6 to become a recognized accrediting association and has
7 received an adverse decision from the department shall have
8 the right to appeal that decision. All appeals shall be
9 governed by the general rules of administrative practice and
10 procedure for Commonwealth agencies.
11 (3) The Keystone Quality Certificate designation by the
12 department shall be provided to the Child-Care Information
13 Services agency or any successor agency that the department
14 uses to provide child-care information or resources and
15 referral services for parents, employers and the general
16 public. The Child-Care Information Services agency shall
17 provide the information about the Keystone Quality
18 Certificate designation of a child-care provider to parents,
19 employers and the general public.
20 (c) Promotion of designation.--The department shall promote
21 the Keystone Quality Certificate designation as an indicator of
22 quality in child care. The department shall encourage the Child-
23 Care Information Services agencies and county assistance offices
24 and any other relevant State governmental agencies or
25 contractors to promote the Keystone Quality Certificate
26 designation when providing information about child care.
27 (d) Additional designations.--The department may establish
28 additional quality standards and develop quality designations to
29 be conferred on child-care programs that voluntarily meet those
30 standards.
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1 Section 4. Funds to support quality improvements through
2 accreditation.
3 (a) General rule.--The department shall spend not less than
4 $2,000,000 of the annual federally required quality set-aside
5 for child care as required through the Child Care and
6 Development Fund, or it successor programs, in support of a
7 competitive grant program to child-care providers to assist them
8 in attaining or continuing the Keystone Quality Certificate
9 designation. Should additional Federal funds be made available
10 to support improvements in quality in child care, the department
11 shall also use such funds in accordance with this section.
12 (b) Qualifying child-care providers.--The designated funds
13 shall be used to assist child-care providers that are not
14 currently accredited by a recognized accrediting association to
15 become accredited in order to obtain the Keystone Quality
16 Certificate. The designated funds shall also be used to assist
17 child-care providers that are accredited by a recognized
18 accrediting association to maintain such accreditation.
19 (c) Use of funds.--Funds may be used to support the purchase
20 of equipment and supplies, as well as personnel, necessary to
21 meet or continue Keystone Quality Certificate standards. Funds
22 may also be used for making site improvements, provided that the
23 improvements are necessary to achieve or continue the Keystone
24 Quality Certificate designation. Funds shall be made available
25 by the department in such amounts as shall substantially assist
26 providers in achieving the Keystone Quality Certificate
27 designation.
28 (d) Technical assistance.--The department shall provide for
29 technical assistance to assist child-care providers in attaining
30 accreditation by a recognized accrediting association or
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1 continuing their accreditation status. The assistance may
2 include payments in support of mentor teachers and other
3 professionals to assist with the achievement of the Keystone
4 Quality Certificate designation.
5 (e) Applicability of program.--The Keystone Quality
6 Certificate program shall be available to child-care centers,
7 group day-care homes and family day-care homes that meet the
8 following conditions:
9 (1) Have signed agreements with a Child-Care Information
10 Services agency indicating a willingness to accept children
11 participating in the Commonwealth's subsidized child-care
12 program.
13 (2) Operate at least five and one-half hours per day, 12
14 months per year.
15 Section 5. Funds to support Keystone Quality Certificate
16 recipients.
17 (a) General rule.--The department shall provide additional
18 support and incentives to child-care programs with Keystone
19 Quality Certificate designations.
20 (b) Amount of funding.--
21 (1) For a child-care program whose average annual
22 enrollment of children receiving child-care subsidy through
23 the Child Care Works subsidized child-care program is equal
24 to or less than 10% upon initial attainment of the Keystone
25 Quality Certificate and upon reaccreditation by a recognized
26 accrediting association, the department shall provide that
27 Keystone Quality Certificate child-care provider with a bonus
28 payment of at least:
29 (i) $1,500 for a family day-care home.
30 (ii) $2,400 for a group day-care home.
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1 (iii) $5,000 for a child-care center with an average
2 enrollment between 13 and 25 children.
3 (iv) $15,000 for a child-care center with an average
4 enrollment between 26 and 99 children.
5 (v) $20,000 for a child-care center with an average
6 enrollment of 100 or more children.
7 The support is to be adjusted annually in accordance with the
8 Consumer Price Index.
9 (2) Child-care programs whose average annual enrollment
10 of children receiving child-care subsidy through the Child
11 Care Works subsidized child-care program is greater than 10%
12 shall receive an additional incentive payment per child equal
13 to 10% more than 100% of the market rate for child care in
14 each county of this Commonwealth, taking into account the age
15 of the child and the child-care setting. The department shall
16 determine the rate biannually and provider payment rates for
17 Keystone Quality Certificates shall be adjusted accordingly.
18 (3) A child-care program receiving a bonus pursuant to
19 paragraph (1) may be eligible for a rate supplement pursuant
20 to paragraph (2) beginning 12 months after the bonus payment
21 is made, provided the program meets the requirements of
22 paragraph (2) with respect to enrollment of subsidized
23 children.
24 (c) Expenditures.--The purpose of expenditures under this
25 section shall be to assist child-care providers to maintain
26 quality standards achieved through accreditation and to ensure
27 that high quality child-care services designated by the Keystone
28 Quality Certificate are accessible to low-income children.
29 Section 6. Annual report to General Assembly.
30 The department shall submit an annual report to the General
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1 Assembly on the department's activities under this act. The
2 report shall include, but not be limited to, the total number of
3 Keystone Quality Certificates granted, the total number and
4 dollar amount of program bonuses, the total number of children
5 served and the total number of subsidized children served. The
6 report shall provide information on each of the activities
7 supported through this act and the impact of each of the
8 activities on providers and children in this Commonwealth.
9 Section 7. Effective date.
10 This act shall take effect in 180 days.
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