§ 98.20 - A child's eligibility for child care services.

§ 98.20 A child's eligibility for child care services.

(a) To be eligible for services under § 98.50, a child shall, at the time of eligibility determination or redetermination:

(1)

(i) Be under 13 years of age; or,

(ii) At the option of the Lead Agency, be under age 19 and physically or mentally incapable of caring for himself or herself, or under court supervision;

(2)

(i) Reside with a family whose income does not exceed 85 percent of the State's median income (SMI), which must be based on the most recent SMI data that is published by the Bureau of the Census, for a family of the same size; and

(ii) Whose family assets do not exceed $1,000,000 (as certified by such family member); and

(3)

(i) Reside with a parent or parents who are working or attending a job training or educational program; or

(ii) Receive, or need to receive, protective services, which may include specific populations of vulnerable children as identified by the Lead Agency, and reside with a parent or parents other than the parent(s) described in paragraph (a)(3)(i) of this section.

(A) At grantee option, the requirements in paragraph (a)(2) of this section may be waived for families eligible for child care pursuant to this paragraph, if determined to be necessary on a case-by-case basis.

(B) At grantee option, the waiver provisions in paragraph (a)(3)(ii)(A) of this section apply to children in foster care when defined in the Plan, pursuant to § 98.16(g)(7).

(b) A grantee or other administering agency may establish eligibility conditions or priority rules in addition to those specified in this section and § 98.46, which shall be described in the Plan pursuant to § 98.16(i)(5), so long as they do not:

(1) Discriminate against children on the basis of race, national origin, ethnic background, sex, religious affiliation, or disability;

(2) Limit parental rights provided under subpart D of this part;

(3) Violate the provisions of this section, § 98.46, or the Plan. In particular, such conditions or priority rules may not be based on a parent's preference for a category of care or type of provider. In addition, such additional conditions or rules may not be based on a parent's choice of a child care certificate; or

(4) Impact eligibility other than at the time of eligibility determination or redetermination.

(c) For purposes of implementing the citizenship eligibility verification requirements mandated by title IV of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, 8 U.S.C. 1601 et seq., only the citizenship and immigration status of the child, who is the primary beneficiary of the CCDF benefit, is relevant. Therefore, a Lead Agency or other administering agency may not condition a child's eligibility for services under § 98.50 based upon the citizenship or immigration status of their parent or the provision of any information about the citizenship or immigration status of their parent.

[63 FR 39981, July 24, 1998, as amended at 81 FR 67579, Sept. 30, 2016]