Administrative Rules of Montana › Department 37 - PUBLIC HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES › Chapter 37.80 - CHILD CARE ASSISTANCE › Subchapter 37.80.1 - General Requirements › Rule 37.80.102 - DEFINITIONS

Current through Register Vol. 13, July 5, 2024
As used in this chapter, the following definitions
				  apply:
(1) "Authorization of services"
				means the span of time, number of hours per week, and schedule that an eligible
				child is approved for care at a particular provider's facility. In addition, it
				indicates the monthly payment amount that the family is approved to receive for
				the indicated child at the indicated facility. The authorization of services is
				used to create the authorization plan.
(2) "Authorization plan" means the document
				prepared by the department, or its agent, that states the amount of child care
				assistance to be paid and includes any additional information required by the
				department. This document is generated after the authorization of services has
				been created.
(3) "Child care"
				means care by a provider listed in ARM
				37.80.101
				for a child less than 13 years of age at the time of eligibility determination
				or a child with disabilities or special needs. The terms "child care" and "day
				care" have the same meaning and are used interchangeably in this subchapter.
(4) "Child care assistance" means
				a subsidy for child care that is paid to a child care provider on behalf of a
				parent or guardian.
(5) "Child
				care facility" means a place where a provider listed in ARM
				37.80.101
				is authorized under license or registration to provide child care.
(6) "Child care resource and referral agency
				(CCR- agency)" or "resource and referral agency" means an agent of the
				department authorized to determine eligibility for benefits, process payment to
				providers, and carry out other functions as authorized by the
				department.
(7) "Child with
				disabilities" means a child with a disability as that term is used in 45 CFR
				Part 98.
(8) "Child with special
				needs" means a child who requires additional assistance because of an emotional
				or physical disability, a cognitive delay, or both that is verified by
				documentation from a medical professional.
(9) "Children from the same household" means
				children who are of the same sibling group.
(10) "Copayment" means the portion of child
				care expenses which the parent is responsible for paying in accordance with the
				sliding scale established in ARM
				37.80.202.
(11) "Department" means the
				Department of Public Health and Human Services.
(12) "Federal poverty guidelines (FPG)" or
				"Federal poverty level (FPL)" means the poverty guidelines published by the
				U.S. Department of Health and Human Services based on information compiled by
				the U.S. Bureau of the Census. Upon request, a copy of the guidelines is
				available from the Department of Public Health and Human Services, Human and
				Community Services Division, 111 N. Jackson St., P.O. Box 202952, Helena, MT
				59620-2925.
(13) "Full-time child
				care" means care certified for over 30 hours per week on a regular basis.
(14) "Full-time field experience
				and class time" means 30 hours per week combined of field experience and class
				time accrued by a postsecondary education student.
(15) "Graduated eligibility" means graduated
				phaseout as that term is used in the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act
				of 2014 at
				42 USC
				9858c(c)(2)(N)(iv).
(16) "Household size" means the
				number of household members including the parents, as the term is defined in
				this chapter, and the children of the parents, but not including adults living
				in the household other than the parents, unless the income of such adults is
				counted in computing the household's monthly income under this chapter.
(17) "Infant/toddler" for payment
				purposes means a child from birth to through the end of the 35th month of age.
(18) "Intentional program
				violation (IPV)" means conduct by a parent or provider described in ARM
				37.80.506.
(19) "Monthly income" means gross
				monthly income of the parent or parents residing with the child and the income
				of adults in the household who are included in the calculation of household
				size as provided in ARM 37.80.202. The income of a parent not residing with the
				child will be counted as monthly income under this chapter only in cases where
				such parent's income is available to support the household of the child. Any
				child support provided by a parent not residing with the child to the household
				of such child will be counted as monthly income, and such child support will be
				deemed to constitute the extent to which the nonresidential parent's income is
				available to the household. The following sources of income are the only
				sources that will not be counted in determining gross monthly income:
(a) educational loans, scholarships, and
				grants ;
(b) earned income tax
				credit;
(c) tribal per capita
				payments;
(d) independent living
				INC payments for youth;
(e) foster
				care support services;
(f) food
				stamp benefits;
(g) a minor's
				earned income, if attending high school or a GED-type program; and
(h) supplemental security income (SSI)
				payments.