How can the Child and Adult Care Food Program help me?
- Helps by providing reimbursement to cover some of the cost of the meals served to children in your care.
- Teaches how to plan and serve meals that meet USDA standards for nutrition.
- Lets parents know that children have nutritious meals while in child care.
- Provides training that assists in being a quality provider.
- Helps to meet with others in child care.
What are my responsibilities?
Rights and Responsibilities of the Day Care Home Provider - The Provider Agrees To:
- Keep daily records of:
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- a. the menu that is served to the day care children at each meal, each day;
b. the number of children's meals served at each meal service;
c. the number of enrolled children who are present each day;
d. the time of arrival and departure of each child.
- Claim meals served to provider’s own children or foster children (if eligible) living in the provider's home only if enrolled children who live outside the provider's home are also served that meal.
- Serve meals, which meet the Child and Adult Care Food Program meal pattern requirements for the ages of children being served.
- Serve meals to all enrolled children without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, or disability.
- Conduct the "day care" in the provider's own home or an approved private residence and provide adult supervision whenever a day care child is present.
- Keep all records on file for three years and make such records available to the sponsor whenever requested.
- Claim reimbursement only for meals served to eligible children age 12 or under. Documentation is required for exceptions that allow for claiming a child age 13 or older who is a:
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- a. migrant worker's child up to age 16;
b. child with a disability, no age limitation.
- Attend training sessions required by the Sponsoring Organization.
- Allow representatives from the Sponsoring Organization, Child and Adult Nutrition Services, US Department of Agriculture and other State and Federal officials to come into the provider's home to make announced or unannounced reviews of the home’s operation and to have access to its meal service and records during normal hours of child care operations. Anyone making such reviews must show photo identification. These reviews will occur three or more times a year.
- Tell the Sponsoring Organization, without delay, the names of any children added or dropped from the enrollment for day care, or if there are any changes in the home's registration or approval status.
- Submit the meal count and menu records for claiming reimbursement to the Sponsoring Organization by the 4th day of each month. Failure to do so may result in loss of payment for that month.
- Be ineligible for meal reimbursement for one month following a sponsor transfer. This ineligibility does not apply to: 1) those homes which transfer at the end of a program year (September 30 and October 1), or 2) those terminated, by the current sponsor of the provider, without cause. The State agency does not allow for more than one transfer within a program year.
- Maintain the approved types of meals and time schedule as written on the Provider Application form throughout the term of this agreement. Changes must have the prior approval from the sponsoring organization.
- The possible termination from the program if he/she violates this agreement or any state or federal law pertaining to the food program, he/she could be terminated from the program. In addition, the provider would need to pay back to the sponsor any funds received for which he/she was not eligible. Refer to Termination Provisions.
*This information is taken from the Agreement for Participation on the CACFP between the provider and Sanford Family Day Care Network
Program Abuse/Termination Provisions:
- The sponsoring organization or provider may terminate this agreement at any time for cause or convenience.
- Fraudulent abuse of the program by the provider will result in termination of this agreement. In addition, reimbursement may be lost for any meal(s) claimed that do not meet program regulations. Ineligibility to claim a specific meal(s) may be determined, but are not limited to, the following ways:
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- a. Serving a meal that does not meet CACFP requirements.
b. Failure to maintain meal counts on a daily basis.
c. Not noting changes made in the menu served.
d. Over registration/licensure capacity in number of children in care.
e. Claiming meals for ineligible children.
f. Claiming meals for children not present in home during established mealtime serving schedule.
g. Claiming more than three meals per child, one of which must be a snack.
h. Claiming meals for provider's own or foster children when not income eligible or when children from outside the home are not present and/or are not participating in the meal.
i. Failure to notify the sponsoring organization and Department of Social Services immediately of changes affecting their registration/licensure status, income, or address.
j. Participation in Child and Adult Care Food Program under two different sponsorships at the same time.
k. Charging parents an additional fee for meals.
l. Claiming for meals not served.
m. Failure to be in compliance with other Child and Adult Care Food Program regulations.
- The sponsor reserves the right to:
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- a. Use any available legal method to investigate potential abuse.
b. Withhold funds to which the sponsor has determined the provider is not entitled.
- The sponsor reserves the right to deny application to a provider reapplying for the program after a suspension or termination for cause.
- A provider who has been terminated for any reason or denied participation has the right to an Administrative Appeal. For any other adverse actions taken, the provider does not have the right to an Administrative Appeal.
We certify that the information on the provider application and agreement is true and correct to the best of our knowledge, and that we will comply with the rights and responsibilities outlined in this agreement. The provider also certifies that he/she is not participating in the Child and Adult Care Food Program under any other Sponsoring Organization.
What will my reimbursement be?
The CACFP helps to ensure children are receiving balance nutritious meals. Participating providers receive reimbursement for meals served to children enrolled for care. Providers receive reimbursement according to the number of meals they serve to children. The maximum reimbursement that can be received for each child on any day is 2 meals and 1 snack or 2 snacks and 1 meal. Day care homes cannot charge separate fees for meals.
The amount of reimbursement is determined by a two tier reimbursement system. This determination is completed on an individual basis, with the following conditions being taken into consideration.
If the provider resides in an elementary school attendance center that has 50% or more of their students eligible to receive National School Lunch free and reduce-priced meals or the day care home provider lives in a low income area based on current census tract data they can receive the higher rate of reimbursement for meals served to enrolled children in their care. (Tier I). However, this determination does not allow the provider to receive reimbursement for meals served to their "own children" unless the provider has filled out an income eligibility application and it has been determined eligible to receive the higher rate of reimbursement for meals served to "own children" under certain circumstances.
If a provider does not meet the above criteria, they have the option to complete and submit a Provider's Income Application for Tier I and have the sponsoring organization (FDCN) determine if they are eligible to receive the higher rate of reimbursement (Tier I) by being at or below the USDA income guidelines. This determination allows providers to receive reimbursement for meals served to all children including their "own children" under certain circumstances.
The provider that does not meet school data, census tract or household income guidelines can elect to have the sponsoring organization collect Family Household Income Applications from the families of enrolled children. The provider will receive the higher rate of reimbursement for each enrolled child whose family’s income application has been determined to be at or below the USDA income guidelines. This provider will receive the lower rate of reimbursement (Tier II) for enrolled children families who are not at or below these guidelines or who do not submit completed Family Household Income Eligibility Applications.
The provider who does not meet any of the above criteria for Tier I status will receive the lower rate of reimbursement (Tier II) for all enrolled children. This determination does not allow providers to claim meals for their "own children".
How can I participate?
Child Day Care Homes must be licensed in order to participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program. Click on the link below to review licensing information from SD Department of Social Services. http://www.state.sd.us/social/CCS/Licensing/infolic.htm
In order to participate on the CACFP, day care homes must be in the home. Group Family Day Care Homes must be in a residential building. It may be a provider’s home or it may be a vacant home. For additional information on participation on the CACFP in South Dakota you may contact the SD Department of Education & Cultural Affairs, Child & Adult Nutrition Services at http://doe.sd.gov/oess/cans/cacfp
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