Assignment 5
(Due October 21 before class)
Read the Executive Summary, Introduction & pp. 167-184 of Loprest, et al., "Welfare Reform under PRWORA", which is on E-Reserve in the First Class conference for Econ325. Also skim "CCDF State and Territories Plan Preprint, FFY 2010-201" which is available at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ccb/law/guidance/current/ACF118/preprint_2010_final.htm . This is the form that states have to fill out in order to meet the regulatory requirement that they file a state Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Plan every two years. If anything is unclear in the form, go to http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ccb/law/guidance/current/pi2009-05/pi2009-05.htm where the federal government provides guidance for states completing their state plans.
You will also need to go carefully through (including checking out the links) in the presentation "Legislation & Administrative Law" in the First Class conference. Finally, click here to check out the links that Betty Febo has provided regarding CCDF Plan. You will need to scroll down to "Resources for Finding CCDF Plans" on Betty's page for the course.
Obtain the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Plan for FFY 2009-2010 including the attachments that contain the reimbursement rates (Attachment 3.2A), the summary of results of the Market Rate Survey (Attachment 3.2B) & sliding fee scale for the state (Attachment 3.5.1) for the state that you have chosen to study. Each state has a Lead Agency responsible for the state's CCDF program. A listing of the Lead Agencies is available at http://nccic.acf.hhs.gov/statedata/dirs/display.cfm?title=ccdf. Go to the Lead Agency site and obtain the states's FFY 2010-2011 CCDF Fund Plan.
For example, I obtained the Alabama FFY 2010-2011 CCDF Fund Plan by clicking on the "Web Site" hyperlink for the Alabama Lead Agency (Alabama's Department of Human Resources). The link was http://www.dhr.alabama.gov. Since it wasn't obvious where the CCDF plan was, I searched for "CCDF Plan" and was able to find it easily.
Some states fail to put the attachments on the Internet. If the state you chose, does not have the reimbursement rates, market rate survey results & sliding fee scale attachments on the web, you will need to email or call the Lead Agency that administers the CCDF program in your state & ask them to provide you with these documents.
Using as background, material from Loprest, et al. and the presentation "Legislation & Administrative Law" & "CCDF State and Territories Plan Preprint, FFY 2010-2011" skim your state plan including all appendices to obtain an overall view of the nature of your state's CCDF program.
(1) Using Section 3.2 from your state's CCDF plan & Attachments 3.2A & 3.2B describe the way in which you state sets the maximum prices (called maximum reimbursement rates) paid to child care providers that care for children with CCDF subsidies. Be sure to discuss whether or not your state pays maximum reimbursement rates up to the 75th percentile of the local market rate for care as determined in the latest Market Rate Survey (MRS). Indicate whether or not your state has carried out a market rate survey within the last two years and how the last survey was carried out. Can you think of any way to improve the market rate survey that you state conducted?
Discuss the degree to which your state payment rates provide "equal access" to child care for low-income families in your state. The CCDF Regulations require that that low-income children funded under CCDF have access to the same types of care as more economically-advantaged children. This is called the "Equal Access" requirement.
Relative prices are important for both the supply and demand for different types of care. Using the maximum reimbursement rates in Attachment 3.2A, divide the price that your state pays for the care of preschoolers (generally children age 3-5) in child care centers by the price the state pays for preschoolers care in informal care. Divide the price that your state pays for the care of preschoolers (children age 3-5) in child care centers by the price the state pays for preschool care in family child care homes (if the state has different rates for large and regular family child care use the price for regular family child care). Finally, divide the price that your state pays for the care of preschoolers (children age 3-5) in family child care homes by the price the state pays for preschool care in informal care. You now have the relative prices that your state sets for care provided by the CCDF program in your state. During class, we will compare these relative prices across states and use economic theory to speculate about the likely effects of differences in relative prices paid by states on the supply and demand for different types of child care.
Using Section 3.4--"Priorities for Serving Children and Families" discuss the way in which your state allocates CCDF child care subsidies? In general, if a state has to set priorities for service, it indicates that a state is not able to serve all eligible children. Generally, states that can't serve all eligible children have a list, called the waiting list, where they record information on families waiting for child care subsidies. Given your states priorities, what type of families would you expect to be on the waiting list for care?
Given the information from Sections 3.3 and 3.4 of your state plan, do you believe that your states system is horizontally equitable? Vertically equitable? Discuss briefly. Be sure to describe your definition of "equally situated"
Search the web site for the Lead Agency in your state and find out how your state has used the additional funds that the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) made available for the CCDF program. Briefly describe how your state is using the additional funding for the CCDF program made available by ARRA. Do you think the additional ARRA funding for the CCDF program was used well? Do you believe that it provided an effective economic stimulus?
For example, I obtained information on how Alabama was using the addition CCDF funding made available by ARRA by clicking on the "Web Site" hyperlink for the Alabama Lead Agency (Alabama's Department of Human Resources). The link was http://www.dhr.alabama.gov. Since it wasn't obvious where information on ARRA expenditures for the CCDF program was, I searched for "ARRA" and was able to find it easily.
Turn in your answers to the above questions to the Assignment 5 folder in the First Class conference for the class before class on October 21.
During class on October 21, I will call on students at random to answer the above questions. There will also be a class discussion of the way in which both the CCDF program and the additional ARRA funding for the CCDF program are being implemented by states.
© Ann Dryden Witte, 2000