HEN (Humboldt Early Education Newsletter) Eighth Edition
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Early Education and Child Care
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the state’s child care system, and federal funding has been critical to reducing long-term losses in this system. Building on the state’s $400 million investment since 2019 in expanded early education and child care, and based on recommendations made in the Master Plan for Early Learning and Care, the Budget expands high-quality transitional kindergarten programs for all four-year-olds through $250 million in incentive funds for districts that expand these programs. The Budget also includes $200 million one-time General Fund for transitional kindergarten and kindergarten facilities and $50 million one-time Proposition 98 General Fund for professional development focused on preparing teachers for early childhood programs. The Budget also builds on the Governor’s previous investments of $1.5 billion over the last two years in special education, with $545 million ongoing funding and adding $300 million for additional special education for infants, toddlers and preschoolers this year.
The Administration has already begun the collective bargaining process with representatives of child care providers to negotiate a memorandum of understanding that governs the payments made to these providers. The Budget also reflects $44 million ongoing Cannabis Funds for 4,500 more child care vouchers, including $21.5 million in 2020-21.
2021-22
Governor's Budget PDF:
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Phase 1A of vaccine distribution |
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COVID-19 Vaccination Information
Humboldt County will use this tab to share information about COVID-19 vaccination planning, safety and distribution.
COVID-19 Vaccine Plan
The State of California is currently following a national vaccination plan outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in October. The federal plan breaks vaccination down into three phases, based on the supply of vaccine available. The U.S. is currently in Phase 1A of the three-phase process, when COVID-19 vaccine is relatively scarce. Experts project that it will take at least six to nine months to move through all three phases of this vaccination plan, depending on supply chains. States are implementing their own COVID-19 vaccination plans, consistent with the CDC plan guidelines.
The State’s current Phase 1 vaccine plan is posted on the State’s COVID-19 website. It states, “After healthcare workers and long-term care residents, the next to be vaccinated will be individuals who have higher risk for severe disease or death (due to age or other factors), who are unable to work at home, who live or work in geographic areas that have been highly impacted or who are most likely to spread disease to other workers or to the public.”
Distribution Phases:
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Phase 1A includes healthcare workers and long-term care residents.
- Phase 1B includes those ages 65+, those in congregate settings (including incarcerated and homeless populations) and some essential workforce sectors.
- Phase 1C includes individuals ages 50+, those age 16-64 with increased risk of severe COVID-19 illness and additional critical infrastructure workforce.
- The vaccine will not be available to the general population until Phase 2, when vaccine supply is expected to have increased substantially.
To support Public Health in planning for future distribution of vaccine to community workplaces and to provide feedback on that process, organization/agencies are invited to complete the Humboldt Community Workforce Survey using this link: https://forms.gle/PzSXfKcxKwtfp5jd9.

Please try to limit survey responses to one per agency.
If you have additional concerns, please reach back out to us via phone 707-441-5000 or by email at covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us
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Congrats To Nancy For Being Our
Hen Survey Raffle Winner!
Thank You To All Of Our Participants!
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*Reminder* Guidance for the Use of Face Coverings |
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The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection remains and will continue to be in our midst for the foreseeable next several months. Since the start of the pandemic, we have learned a lot about COVID-19 transmission, most notably that there are a large proportion of people who are infected but are asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic, and they play an important part in community spread. The use of face coverings by everyone can limit the release of infected droplets when talking, coughing, sneezing, singing, exercising, shouting, or other forms of increased respiration, and they can also reinforce physical distancing by signaling the need to remain apart. In addition, increasing evidence also demonstrates a cloth face covering or mask also offers some protection to the wearer, too.
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Tips and Questions to Keep Child Care Providers
and Families Healthy
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Child care providers need the state of California, which is responsible for most of our pay and working conditions, to adapt – just like we have.
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The Truth About Parent Receipts
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THE NATION’S LEADING EXPERT ON THE BUSINESS OF FAMILY CHILD CARE
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"Every January I get many questions from family child care providers on the same topic:
“Do I have to give the parents in my program an end-of-year receipt?”
“I’m I responsible for giving parents my Social Security number or EIN, even if they left owing me money?
“Do I have to complete IRS Form W-10 and give one to each parent in my program?”
The answer to all of these questions is “No.”
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CLASP’s state-by-state estimates of the funds
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This week’s COVID relief package contains $10 billion in direct funding for child care relief—a much-needed down payment for a field on the verge of collapse. Alycia Hardy and Katherine Gallagher Robbins estimate how much each state, D.C, and Puerto Rico would receive from the $10 billion investment, and Christine Johnson-Staub addresses how states can use the funding to increase equity and maximize support for families and early educators.
While an important step, this funding falls far short of the $50 billion the child care sector needs to survive COVID, which has devastated the sector. Without significant additional support, it will be difficult for parents to return to work, children will be left without critical supports for their health and well-being, and the millions of women who work in child care—disproportionately women of color—would lose their livelihoods.

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California Department of Education (CDE) Early Learning and Care COVID-19 Resources |
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The Early Learning and Care Division of CDE has created a dedicated webpage to provide guidance and directives about early learning and care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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MB 20-19 (a) Updated Guidance on Family Fees for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020-21
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MB 20-18 Reopening and Reimbursement Requirements for Direct Service Contractors
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MB 20-17 Requirements for Distance Learning Plans, Program Quality, and Distance Learning Services for Direct Service Contractors
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Coronavirus Information
Please refer to the following notices regarding Coronavirus:
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PIN-20-30-CCP - Local Licensing Call For Child Care Providers Regarding Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
*To register, please call the Chico Regional Office at 530-895-5033*
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Dear Stakeholders,
The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) will host its third quarterly child care transfer stakeholder meeting on Jan. 28th, 2021. Please register for the event here.
We want to thank the counties, agencies, parents, providers, and stakeholders who have participated in our stakeholder meetings and listening sessions as well as those who completed our surveys or submitted comments and questions. Your input is invaluable as we work to meet our common goals of enabling a whole-family, human-centered approach to the child care transfer. We look forward to sharing updates and responding to questions, suggestions and concerns during our meeting on the 28th.
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Child Care Transition Process to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS)
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Effective July 1, 2021 a majority of the child care and early learning and care programs will be moving from the California Department of Education to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS).
The State of California is committed to building and strengthening an equitable, comprehensive, quality, and affordable child care and development system for the children and families in our state and has created a website about this transition.
You are welcome to share your feedback on the transition process in English or Spanish by completing this SurveyMonkey survey or filling out this form.
To learn about upcoming stakeholder meetings, or for any other questions or information related to this transition, please reach out to us at: CCTransition@dss.ca.gov.
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The California Department of Public Health Director late yesterday issued a Health Order intended to maintain quality of care in hospitals experiencing a surge in COVID-19 patients by increasing the availability of intensive care unit (ICU) and other hospital beds statewide.
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Local Events, Trainings, and Job Opportunities
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As child care providers, sometimes you need each other to share ideas, ask questions, be heard and support others. Changing Tides Family Services is proud to host a monthly Zoom time just for you called “Provider Hour”. Join the group one Monday a month from 6-7pm starting Monday November 9, 2020.
Provider Hour will be facilitated by Resource & Referral staff.
Interpretation will be available
in Spanish. Questions? Call
707-444-8293!
Como proveedores de cuidado infantil, a veces se necesitan mutuamente para compartir ideas, hacer preguntas, ser escuchados y apoyar a los demás. Changing Tides Family Services se enorgullece de ofrecer un tiempo de Zoom mensual solo para usted llamado "Hora del proveedor". Únase al grupo un lunes al mes de 6 a 7 p.m. a partir del lunes 9 de novembre de 2020.
La hora del proveedor será facilitada por el personal de Recursos y Referencias.
La interpretación estará disponible en español. Preguntas? Llame al
707-444-8293 para recibir el
enlace Zoom.
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TEMPORARY TEACHER, McKinleyville
Responsible for the development & implementation of classroom activities—providing support & supervision for a toddler prog. Meet Associate Teacher Level on Child Development Permit Matrix & have 1 yr. experience teaching in a toddler setting. Temp F/T 40 hrs/wk. M-F $14.78-$15.52/hr. Open Until Filled.
CLASSROOM ASSISTANT, Eureka
Assist center staff in the day-to-day operation of the classroom for a preschool prog. 6-12 ECE units prefer or enrolled in ECE classes & have 6 months’ exp. working w/ children. P/T 28 hrs/wk $13.26-$14.62/hr. Open Until Filled.
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2021 Federal Omnibus Spending Bill and Relief Package |
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By the County of Los Angeles Office for the Advancement of Early Care and Education
"On December 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law H.R. 133, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Cuellar), which contains $900 billion in COVID-19 relief aid and $1.4 trillion in omnibus spending to fund the government through the remainder of Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2021. The package includes funding for an array of items inclusive of a COVID-19 relief package. Early care and education is among the beneficiaries for increased funding and COVID-19 relief as follows:
· Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) – $5.91 billion, which is an increase of $85.0 million over FFY 2020 to help states continue to improve the quality and affordability of local childcare programs.
· Head Start, Early Head Start, and Early Head Start Child Care Partnerships – $10.75 billion, which is $135.0 million more than FFY 2020 to help local communities provide continuous high-quality services to low-income infants and toddlers.
· COVID-19 Relief – $10.0 billion to provide grants for childcare providers that are currently open or temporarily closed due to COVID-19, regardless of whether they had previously received funding through the existing CCDBG program. Grants can be used to cover personnel costs; sanitization and cleaning; personal protective equipment; fixed costs, including mortgage obligations, rent, utilities, and insurance; and modifications to childcare services as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This funding must be used to supplement, not supplant, other Federal, State, and local funding used to provide childcare."
The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) estimates California’s allocation of the relief funding at $1.005 billion. Click here to access their fact sheet Child Care Relief Funding in the Year-End Stimulus Deal: A State-by-State Estimate.
Source: M.Sartell. Public Policy Weekly Update - January 5, 2021.
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The relief bill provides much-needed investments, including on child care, that can help provide a bridge until the Biden-Harris Administration begins and another relief package can be agreed on. That said, even though the bills include investments that are critical right now – especially since it’s been almost 9 months since the CARES Act passed – it’s not enough. Congress and the new Administration will need to act swiftly in the new year on another package that provides the equitable relief and recovery investments needed for families and communities. We will be keeping up the fight in the new year to secure those investments in child care, Head Start, paid leave, and for other key supports that help families and communities weather this crisis, including paid leave, unemployment insurance, and more. Below is some information on what is in each of these bills – this is not a full run-down of everything, so stay tuned as we and other organizations continue to dig into the bill text further!
Omnibus Spending
The Labor-HHS full-year FY 2021 spending bills includes $5.911 billion for CCDBG in ongoing funding, an increase of +$85 million over FY 2020 Enacted and $10.748 billion for Head Start, an increase of +$135 million over FY 2020 Enacted levels. As a reminder, this funding is baked into the program’s base going forward, and is NOT one-time funding.
Relief Bill
The bill includes $10 billion for child care through CCDBG, though like the CARES Act, it includes additional flexibilities to meet the needs of the current moment – including to serve providers and families who are not currently receiving CCDBG subsidies. Head Start received $250 million in additional relief investments. Relevant language for these sections of the relief bill are attached.
Our friends at CLASP have also created some helpful documents to explain the investment and recommendations about how to use the funding quickly and equitable:
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Estimates of how much each state will receive from the new child care relief funding (from Kate Gallagher-Robbins & Alycia Hardy)
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Recommendations for how states can use the money quickly to make an impact for families with low incomes and families of color (from Christine Johnson-Staub)
The package does not extend the requirement for employers to provide emergency paid sick leave and paid family leave. It instead allows employers and self-employed individuals to claim tax credits for voluntarily provided emergency paid leave that is provided through March 31, 2021.
There are also a number of nutrition & food assistance provisions to highlight (thank you to FRAC for this summary!). The bill:
- Expands the Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) program for children under six-years-old, a program offering a lifeline that fills nutrition needs when child care is closed due to COVID-19. This expansion will ensure that millions of young children can access needed nutrition benefits without the hassle of difficult applications and verification requirements.
- Provides emergency funding to support the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) child care providers and sponsors services and the School Nutrition Programs by replacing 55 percent of the total reimbursement funding lost for each claiming month from April 2020 to June 2020 plus half of March 2020.
- Expands SNAP benefits for low income families.
The bill also provides another round of stimulus checks to families but with some key changes. The payments will be up to $600 per individual and qualified child, with no cap on household size. Adult dependents are not eligible, BUT payments are available to immigrant families, if one spouse has a valid SSN. In addition, unemployment insurance has been extended for 11 weeks with an extra $300 weekly enhancement to benefits. Read package here.
NCFN’s Transition Memo: Prioritize Child Care Infrastructure
The National Children’s Facilities Network (NCFN) shared their Biden-Harris Transition Memo. The memo offers recommendations on how to ensure that the nation’s early care and education (ECE) infrastructure promotes health, safety, and program quality. As the incoming Biden-Harris Administration and Congress turn their attention to the vast challenges affecting the ECE sector, NCFN is eager to serve as a resource on effective approaches to improving the quality of early learning environments and supporting child care businesses.
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Child Care Relief Funding in the Year-End Stimulus Deal: A State-by-State Estimate
Our country’s existing and long-term child care crisis—inequitable access for communities of color, poverty-level wages for early educators, and unaffordable care for far too many families— has been exacerbated by the devastating, inequitable impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, which has pushed the child care and early learning sector to the brink of collapse. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 provides $10 billion in much-needed direct pandemic related relief for the child care sector. These funds can be used to support providers facing reduced enrollment and increased costs of serving children safely, reduce family co-payments, pay staff salaries, provide care for the children of essential workers regardless of income, support costs related to reopening, and more. The legislation encourages lead agencies to delink provider payments from attendance.
This new infusion of federal dollars comes on top of the $3.5 billion of much-needed relief for child care provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act in the spring. This additional funding, while an important and long-overdue down payment to support the fragile child care sector, still falls far short of the more than $50 billion the sector needs to survive the pandemic. 1 Without this additional support, our nation runs the risk of exacerbating the child care crisis that existed long before the pandemic, making it harder for parents to work, leaving children without critical supports for their health and wellbeing, and jeopardizing the livelihoods of early childhood educators—disproportionately women of color and immigrant women.
California is estimated to receive $1,005,065,505. Click here to read full report.
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The following is a link to a matrix with information about bills of likely interest to the field of early care and education as of January 5, 2021. The last day to introduce bills is February 19, 2021. Thanks to the Child Care Planning Committee and Policy Roundtable for Child Care and Development - Joint Committee on Legislation of the County of Los Angeles for this information.
The following are the bills related to ECE facilities infrastructure introduced so far :
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Online Reporting through the Child Development Provider Accounting Reporting Information System (CPARIS) |
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Attention: Migrant Special Services (CMSS) and Resource and Referral Programs (CRRP) Contractors
Contractors are reminded that the deadline to submit December Quarter reports is January 20, 2021. Prior to Fiscal Year 2020-21, Attendance and Fiscal reports were submitted to the Child Development and Nutrition Fiscal Services (CDNFS) via hard copy and sent to the CDE utilizing various postal services. As of July 2020, all CMSS and CRRP contractors were instructed to continue reporting their monthly or quarterly Fiscal Reports via paper form submission, as the CPARIS system was unable to collect data for these two report types at that time.
CMSS and CRRP contracts are now available, and contactors will now report their expenditure data to CDNFS via CPARIS. The following report types are now live in CPARIS:
CCTR (9500), CSPP (8501), CMIG (9500), CHST (9529), CCIP (9529), CLPC (9529), CPKS (9529), CMSS (9500A), CRRP (2507)
Contractors who have submitted CMSS and/or CRRP reports for FY 2020-21 (July through November) via hard copy must resubmit their report via CPARIS by Wednesday, January 20th to ensure the CPARIS database captures expenditures for the full contract period. Reports must be submitted and certified in sequential order. For example, a September quarter report must be submitted and certified before a December quarter report can be submitted and certified.
CMSS reports are available in monthly and quarterly periods. CRRP reports are only available in quarterly periods during FY 2020-21, but monthly reporting will be made available in FY 2021-22. CRRP contractors who have submitted monthly hard copy reports to CDNFS in FY 2020-21, must resubmit reports in a quarterly format. Contractors will condense July through September data on the September 2020 quarterly report and October through December data on the December 2020 quarterly report in CPARIS.
Please be aware that although CDNFS is transitioning to have all contractors submit their Attendance and Fiscal forms through the CPARIS system, at this time contractors who hold a Programs for Children with Severe Disabilities (CHAN) contract are still required to submit their reports via hard copy. The PDF form for the CHAN (1400) can be found at https://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/aa/cd/cdnfsforms20.asp. If for any reason you are unable to complete the e-signature for this form, please submit a hard copy by mail with original signature to your assigned fiscal analyst.
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