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Income Eligible Re-Procurement
Board of Early Education and Care September 9, 2008
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Income Eligible Program Background Information
The Income Eligible program provides financial assistance to more than 30,000 children from birth through age 13 Financial assistance provides access through vouchers, grants and contracts Contract portion of the program covers nearly 12,000 children, approximately 40% of Income Eligible caseload Has been more than 10 years since Income Eligible contracts were last put out to bid This re-procurement of contracts will bring EEC into compliance with state procurement requirements
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Income Eligible Program Contract Spending in Context
* Includes contracts for supportive care, teen parents and homeless families.
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Income Eligible Program Profile of Contract Providers
The agency has Income Eligible contracts with nearly 220 providers in nearly 170 towns statewide. Has contracts with three provider types: Group Child Care Family Child Care Systems School Age Programs One out of five contract providers uses EEC contracts for most of their available slots.
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Contract Practices Nationwide Review of Other States
More than 20 states report using child care contracts, but only 10 states (including MA) have large contract programs (most dating to 1970s) Estimated 10% to 12% of children receiving assistance nationwide are served through contracts States tend to use contracts in four basic ways: Stabilize Access Extend Day/Year for H.S. Meet Needs of Specific Population Improve Quality Procurement regulations vary across states, with a majority of states using RFP process during procurement but often only used to procure expansion slots Source: Rachel Schumacher, Kate Irish, and Mark Greenberg, Untapped Potential: How States Contract Directly with Providers to Shore Up Child Care Choices, Center for Law and Social Policy, 2003
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Income Eligible Re-Procurement Goals
Comply with state procurement laws Make policies and practices more equitable Ensure consistent and stable placements Support provider stability Focus on the highest need areas Encourage quality programming Continue building a thriving system
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Components of Re-Procurement Topics for Research & Future Board Discussions
Integrate Contract Requirements With Other Policy Innovations Streamline Administrative and Fiscal Policies Set Minimum Criteria for Eligible Bidders Establish Methodology for Allocating Contracts Geographically Establish Methodology for Evaluating Bids and Awarding Contracts
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Research Phase Topics Being Researched for Future Board Discussions
Analyzed existing program resources and relative need of communities across the state Conducted survey of family child care systems and reviewed current systems requirements Reviewed contracting practices in other states Developed RFI to test various policy options Analyzing options for developing contracts that can absorb future policy innovations – e.g., QRIS, rates Reviewing options to streamline administrative and fiscal policies across contracts, vouchers, and grants Developing options for minimum bidder requirements and bidder evaluation criteria Make point that our focus will be to design contracts that can absorb policy innovations as they evolve
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Research Update Summary of Community Research
EEC has analyzed the following data for more than 350 communities across three age groups: Children below federal poverty level and children on the EEC’s centralized waiting list Capacity for 12,000 licensed providers and more than 450 school-based programs Subsidized capacity across five funding sources including contracts, vouchers, CPC, Head Start and school-based preschool Accountability status of schools in each community Compared relative need in each community with existing subsidized capacity
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Research Update Implications of Community Research
Contracts are distributed equitably across regions Contracts are in high-need communities, with 95% of children on the waiting list and 95% of children below federal poverty living in towns with EEC contracts We are already in communities with highest need, and we know that we need to do more in those communities
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Research Update Family Child Care Systems Overview
Family child care systems provide program and administrative support to family child care providers who want the support of a larger organization offering the following services: Eligibility & Enrollment Business Assistance Billing Services Professional Development Home Visitors Transportation Technical Assistance Backup Child Care Referrals EEC does not contract directly with individual family child care providers, but instead contracts with systems Only a few states fund family child care systems, including California, Illinois and Washington, D.C. 67 systems operate in Massachusetts serving ~2,500 providers, caring for an estimated 12,500 children
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Research Update Family Child Care Systems: Current Standards/ Requirements are Contractual
All requirements and standards for family child care systems are imbedded in the contract with EEC Revised standards were developed in the 1990s and incorporated into the existing Income Eligible contract To inform the development of standards and requirements for the forthcoming RFR, EEC conducted a survey of family child care systems
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Research Update Family Child Care Systems: Survey Findings
Surveyed all systems (response rate of 78%) to gather data in the following areas: Content of provider agreements and orientations Administrative and business services Training and professional development Home visiting practices Transportation services Language and translation Staffing and spending practices Systems offer similar services statewide but approach and specific services offered varies Significant variation among systems in training, professional development, transportation and home visiting services Many systems exceed the requirements of the existing contract with EEC
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Research Update Implications of Family Child Care System Survey
To further strengthen the quality of services and provide consistent supports, EEC may want to work with systems to develop family child care system standards Procurement timeline will only allow for limited modifications/ More time required to develop statewide system standards For current RFR, continue to embed system requirements within contracts. Institute minor changes to ensure requirements are consistent with current EEC polices Initiate collaborative process to develop system standards over long-term
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Research Update Income Eligible – Request for Information (RFI)
Purpose of RFI is to: Collect basic program information from providers Solicit feedback on proposed allocation of contract resources Test feasibility of proposals to streamline fiscal and reimbursement polices Test degree of provider compatibility with EEC administrative and technological requirements Solicit feedback on options related to the structure and terms of the RFR contract The RFI will be available to group and school age child care providers, family child care providers and systems, and public schools
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Procurement Discussions Preview of Future Board Discussion Topics
October Integrating contracts with future policy innovations Follow-up on family child care systems (if necessary) Minimum criteria for eligible bidders November Review of RFI findings Allocation of contracts across age groups Streamlining administrative & fiscal polices December Methodology for evaluating bids and awarding contracts Review options for continuity of care January Review RFR Criteria Vote on RFR
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Re-Procurement Timeline
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