Free Public Forum in Milwaukee: Child Care Fraud Issues

Tomorrow, Thursday November 12th at noon, the 4th Street Forum will be a hosting a live discussion on fraud within the Wisconsin Shares subsidy program and the impact on children. “But What About the Kids? Wisconsin’s Day Care Scandals,” is free, open to the public, and will air on television on Friday November 13th at 10 pm and Sunday November 15th at 9 am on Channel 10.1, Milwaukee Public Television. The forum will feature DCF Secretary Reggie Bicha, Educare Center director Carol Howard, director of Early Childhood Education for Milwaukee Public Schools Ann Terrell, and MATC professor Douglas Udell. If you can’t attend the discussion, or don’t have access to Milwaukee Public Television, the forum will be available at www.mptv.org on Monday November 16th.

Legislators Pass New Child Care Reform Bill

Last Thursday, November 5th, the Wisconsin Senate and Assembly unanimously passed SB331, a bill that was created to increase safety and decrease fraud within child care programs. The bill includes legislation that 1) requires much more frequent criminal background checks for child care providers, 2) bans individuals convicted of certain crimes from holding a child care license, working in a child care facility, or living in a family child care home, and 3) require the Department of Children and Families to suspend a provider’s license if they are charged with a serious crime and revoke the licensed if the provider is convicted of the crime. The bill also includes whistleblower protection for government employees who reasonably suspect that fraud is occurring/ has occurred within Wisconsin Shares.

WECA believes that all children should have the opportunity to be cared for in a safe and nurturing environment. We support the emphasis on improving safety in child care programs within SB331 including more frequent and supportive monitoring of child care programs and ensuring provider accountability. We are concerned, however, about the financial burden that this bill places on programs as they, their employees, and family members (for family child care providers) are required to participate in much more frequent background checks (see story). Many child care programs, who are already caring for children safely, have limited resources and may need to sacrifice other aspects of quality care in order to pay for these background checks.

What do you think the outcomes of this bill will be? Post a comment and let us know what your opinion of SB331 is.

States Cut Early Education Program Funding- Families Feel the Pinch

Two weeks ago, USA Today featured an article discussing the negative impact that early education budget cuts are having on families and children across the nation. In it the author Marisol Bello states, “as budget problems worsen, states are tightening rules for subsidies, eliminating enriched child care programs, raising fees that parents and providers pay, and halting new subsidies.” These program cuts directly impact families, many of whom were already struggling with paying the high cost of child care. Nine states have waiting lists for child care subsidies that continue to grow and Arizona is considering increasing their day care licensing fees by as much as 8,800% (read more on this here)- a fee that likely will be passed on to parents.

In Wisconsin, some areas of early education funding have seen decreases while others have seen cuts. The Wisconsin Shares child care subsidy program continued to have strong support from the state legislature and it received an increase in funding over the previous biennium. Additionally, the program has no waiting list for families eligible for subsidy, even as the demand continues to rise. On the other hand, Wisconsin has reduced its overall funding for programs that improve child care quality. As a result, many low-income children can access care through the Wisconsin Shares program, but it may be of low-quality. These same children are those who could benefit most from high-quality services. In these tough economic times, it is important that early education program funding for low-income children and families address improvements in both access and quality.

Early Learning Challenge Fund: Contact Your Senator

In September, the US House of Representatives passed the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (H.R. 3221). This bill restructures student loan procedures, uses the savings to invest in other areas of education, and includes substantial investments in early childhood education through the Early Learning Challenge Fund. The fund will offer competitive grants to states to enhance the quality of early learning for children ages birth to five. You can read more about the fund and its purposes here. At present, the Senate is considering this legislation and needs to hear why the Early Learning Challenge Fund is important to early care and education across the nation.

YOU can take action:

Please call your US Senate representatives TODAY to tell them that you support the Early Learning Challenge Fund within the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act. You can find out how to contact Senators Feingold and Kohl by clicking here and entering your mailing address.

Sample message to your Senators:

My name is ___ and I am one of your constituents. I fully support the Early Learning Challenge Fund provision within H.R.3221. This fund is a critical investment that will improve the quality of early education. Please support legislation that includes this fund.

Two More Steps in Wisconsin Shares Fraud Prevention

Last week, the Wisconsin legislature passed the Responsibility in Child Care Act (SB280/AB412). In the bill, if a child care provider 1) commits fraud within the Wisconsin Shares subsidy program, 2) is part of a corporation or limited liability company, and 3) is unable to pay back what they owe, then any person who holds 20 percent or more of ownership interest in the child care facility and who has control of/responsibility for the business may be personally liable.

Also last week, Racine and Kenosha Counties announced the creation of two new Anti-Fraud Task Forces dedicated to combating fraud within the Wisconsin Shares child care subsidy program. This development brings the total number of anti-fraud tasks forces to three (in September, the state created the first anti-fraud task force in Milwaukee county).

Both of these initiatives will deter fraud within the Wisconsin Shares program, help the state recoup taxpayer money that was distributed to fraudulent providers, and increase accountability. Wisconsin Shares was created to help low-income families pay for child care so that parents could work. By decreasing fraud, the program can move towards this original, and worthy, intent.

For additional measures that the state has taken in response to child care subsidy fraud, see our previous blog entry here.

Thank You Knupp & Watson!

WECA was chosen as one of 13 organizations that received 24 hours of free marketing and advertising support from Knupp & Watson during their annual Goodstock event. One word to describe the experience? Amazing! Check out our newest video- just one of the many products from the event.

Paid Sick Time, Child Care Providers, and Flu Season

In preparation for this year’s flu season, health organizations have been exceptionally vocal about prevention, symptoms, and care for the seasonal and H1N1 flu (see our earlier blog post with tips and resources for early education programs). These same organizations have also informed the public that the best way to prevent the spread of the flu is to stay home from work, school, child care, or other public places if you are sick. The CDC recommends staying at home until 24 hours after your fever is gone. But what if your job security depends on coming into work everyday, no matter what? What if your job doesn’t offer paid sick time and your child gets sick? These are the types of questions that the National Partnership for Women and Families address regularly on their blog. In a recent entry, staffer Karen Pesapane discussed the lack of paid sick days for professionals in the child care industry. In it she wrote:

“I know the child care industry does not typically provide workers with paid sick days. Case in point, my mother recently retired after 25 years of teaching child care in Connecticut. She told me recently how relieved she is that she retired when she did, because she never had any sick days. She shudders to think how any teachers in the same situation this flu season will not be able to follow the CDC’s advise and stay home when they are sick.”

Recent proposed federal legislation addresses the difficult situation many individuals face when deciding between caring for themselves (or a family member) and getting paid or maintaining employment. The Healthy Families Act (H.R.2460/S.1152) was introduced in May by Representative Rosa DeLauro (CT) and the late Senator Edward Kennedy (MA). The bill would allow certain employees to earn a minimum of one hour of paid sick time for each 30 hours of work that they complete-up to a minimum of 56 hours per year. Only employers who employ 15 or more individuals each working day for 20+ work weeks a year are required to follow the terms of the bill. Wisconsin cosponsors of the bill include Representatives Moore and Baldwin, and Senator Feingold.

Governor Doyle Signs Mandatory Kindergarten Bill into Law

Last week, Governor Doyle signed AB119-a bill that changes current mandates regarding enrollment in, and completion of, 5-year-old Kindergarten- into law. “This legislation will help ensure that all kids in Wisconsin will get off to the right start in school,” said Governor Doyle in a released statement. Beginning in 2011-2012, completion of 5-year-old Kindergarten will be a prerequisite for entering first grade in any Wisconsin public or charter school. School districts will be allowed to make their own rules for parents and guardians to receive an exemption from this mandate. Along with enrollment and completion requirements, the bill also calls for regular attendance by 5-year-old Kindergarten students throughout the school year.

WECA and Public Policy Forum to Study the Child Care Workforce

WECA will be partnering with the Public Policy Forum in Milwaukee to conduct a statewide early childhood workforce study later this year. Later this year, we will distribute a survey to early education professionals across Wisconsin (Be on the lookout in your mailbox!) to examine provider wages, retention, education, benefits, and longevity. Target survey recipients will cover a broad spectrum of the workforce to include professionals at family child care programs (certified and licensed), child care centers, 4 year old kindergarten programs, and Head Start/Early Head Start facilities. Results will be made available to the public early next year.

The last time a comprehensive workforce study of this nature was conducted was in 2001. In the future, we hope to obtain information from professionals more frequently to keep workforce statistics current and relevant.

DCF Secretary Testifies before Legislators in Response to Fraud

On Tuesday September 29, Wisconsin Department of Children and Families Secretary, Reggie Bicha, appeared before the Joint Finance Committee to discuss fraud within the Wisconsin Shares child-care subsidy program. Before fielding questions from legislators, Secretary Bicha discussed the steps his department has taken, and will be taking, to stop and prevent fraud. Read his testimony here. Despite criticism, the department indicates it has made great strides in stopping fraud since it was created 14 months ago. Here’s just a glimpse of what is currently being done:

-DCF has revoked more than 100 child care licenses in the past year. This number is more than double last year’s number.
-Because of recent legislative changes supported by DCF, they can now suspend Shares payments to any provider that they reasonably suspect is committing fraud. In the two weeks that DCF has had this ability, 69 providers have had their Shares payments suspended. See the complete list, and updated suspensions, here.
-DCF has hired a 5 person Fraud Detection and Investigation Unit to focus statewide on fraud.
-DCF has contracted with a private investigation firm-one that specializes in public assistance fraud.
-A Shares fraud hotline has been created (1.877.302.FRAUD). You can also report suspected fraud online, via email, or through the mail.
-DCF has created a system that detects suspicious behavior that could indicate fraud by providers.
-The department is working with legislators to create and pass laws that prevent fraud and hold providers accountable for their actions.

While investigating, DCF has found that 95% of suspected fraud cases are in Milwaukee County and that Milwaukee County officials did not spend all of the money allocated to them to run the Shares program. Many have argued that this money could have been used for more fraud oversight and investigations (Read Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker’s response here). Therefore, in addition to the efforts listed above, several efforts will be focused only on Milwaukee County. The State will be taking over Milwaukee County’s child care administration and program integrity efforts beginning January 1, 2010. The Child Care Anti-Fraud task force- composed of partners like the DCF, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, the Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Milwaukee Police Department, the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. attorney’s office- will start their efforts in Milwaukee County (read more here). DCF is also adding ten new licensors to the Southern Region, who will have smaller case loads and will focus on monitoring providers with licensing violations.

For WECA’s response to fraud in the Wisconsin Shares program, read our op-ed here. We want to know what your response is as well. Leave a comment below to share your opinion.