KANSAS DEPARTMENT FOR CHILDREN
AND FAMILIES
Family Services
DCF Administration Building
555 S. Kansas Ave., 6th Floor
Topeka, KS 66603

OVERVIEW OF CHANGES

A brief overview of the major changes is described below. Other clarifications and technical corrections are also included and described in the next section. Additional technical corrections not mentioned here are being incorporated into KEESM, as needed.

Child Care - New poverty-level guidelines have been published by the Department of Health and Human Services. These guidelines affect the eligibility standards in the Child Care program. State Median income figures are also being adjusted. Family share deductions are also being adjusted. The initial income eligibility limits for Child care are being changed to 85% of the State Median Income (SMI).

In addition, corrections are being made to policies about ineligibility and/or penalties caused by non-cooperation with Child Support Services, and who is affected.

Food Assistance - KEESM 1134 was revised and had language updated. Implementation Memo provides further guidance.

DESCRIPTION, PURPOSE, AND DETAILS OF POLICY CHANGE

1. Child Care, Food Assistance, TANF
   
   
   1. Changes
      
      
      1. Failure to Cooperate – KEESM 2165 is being modified to indicate that these general policies apply to TANF, Food Assistance and Child Care. Program specific information is being moved to the sub-section that corresponds to that program.
         
         
2. Child Care
   
   
   1. Changes
      
      
1. Child Care Non-Cooperation – KEESM 2165.3 is being modified to remove language about ineligibility or penalties only applying if the non-cooperation is for the absent parent of a child for whom child care assistance is being applied or being received at the time the non-cooperation occurred, and language saying that penalties would only apply to the children who were receiving child care at the time the non-cooperation occurred. Both at application and at review, EES will need to assure cooperation has occurred for all the absent parents of the children in the current nuclear family.
   
   
2. Income Eligible (Non-TANF) Child Care – KEESM 2835 is being modified to change the reference at the end of the section to the income eligibility limit from 250% of the Federal Poverty Level to 85% of the State Median Income.
   
   
3. Priorities for Child Care Services - KEESM 2840 is being modified to change references to the child care income eligibility limits from 250% of the Federal Poverty Level to 85% of the State Median Income.
   
   
4. Child Care Standards – KEESM 7440 is being modified to reflect the change in initial income eligibility from 250% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) to 85% of the State Median Income (SMI).
   
   
5. The Family Share Deduction – KEESM 7541 is being modified to remove reference to Tier I eligibility since income eligibility standards are now the same for initial eligibility and at review.
   
   
6. Review Periods for Child Care – KEESM 9374 is being modified to remove language around Tier I and Tier II eligibility since the standards for initial eligibility and for eligibility at review are the same.
   
   
1. Clarifications
   
   None
   
   
3. Employment Services
   
   
   1. Changes
      
      None
      
      
   2. Clarifications
      
      
      1. KEESM 3000 has been reorganized to separate TANF requirements from GOALS requirements and from Food Assistance E&T requirements for clarification. The reorganization will list information that relates to all 3 work programs under the main topic and then break it down into 3 separate areas when required with TANF first, then GOALS, and finally Food Assistance E&T.
         
         
4. Food Assistance
   
   
   1. Changes
      
      
      1. Data Collection of Racial/Ethnicity Categories – KEESM 1134 is being changed to remove language regarding the alternative means to gather race and/or ethnicity data through visual observation. Visual verification is no longer an acceptable means of gathering this data.
         
         
   2. Clarifications
      
      None
      
      

Appendix

Child Care

F-1, Monthly Family Income and Family Share Deduction Schedule, is being updated with the information related to the new poverty level, state median income and initial eligibility income guidelines.

Forms

Food Assistance

ES-3100, ES-3100(s): language above ethnicity and race questions will be revised to remove language regarding using visual observation (“a choice will be made on your behalf”).

EFFECTIVE DATE

All policies in this revision are effective April 1, 2024.

COORDINATION EFFORTS

The material in this letter and manual revision has been coordinated with staff in Economic and Employment Services, Executive leadership, the EES Program Administrators, and the Implementation Planning Team.

Sincerely,
Carla Whiteside-Hicks, PhD
Economic and Employment Services Director
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