Childcare and development services and programs: homeless children.

The Child Care and Development Services Act has a purpose of providing a comprehensive, coordinated, and cost-effective system of childcare and development services for children from infancy to 13 years of age and their parents, including a full range of supervision, health, and support services through full- and part-time programs. Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public instruction to adopt rules and regulations on eligibility, enrollment, and priority of services needed to implement the act. Existing law requires, in order to be eligible for federal- and state- subsidized child development services, a family to meet at least one requirement in 2 specified areas, with one of those requirements being that the family is homeless. Existing law requires that first priority for childcare and developments services go to those children who are neglected or abused who are recipients of child protective services, or children who are at risk of being neglected or abused, as provided. This bill would require that first priority for child development services also go to children experiencing homelessness. The bill would provide that a child experiencing homelessness enrolled in a childcare and development program pursuant to the act is not required to provide a fixed address or mailing address. The bill would require childcare and development service providers to conduct outreach to families experiencing homelessness, including through collaboration with local educational agency liaisons for homeless children and youth, as provided. The act requires a physical examination and evaluation, including age-appropriate immunization, before, or within 6 weeks of, enrollment in a childcare and development program. This bill would prohibit a child eligible to enroll in a childcare and development program who is experiencing homelessness from being denied immediate enrollment into that program for failure to supply documentation of age-appropriate immunization.