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California Department of Education
Official Letter
California Department of Education
Official Letter
April 13, 2021

Dear Executive Directors, Childcare and Development Programs:

Assembly Bill 82 Stipend Update

This letter serves to provide information updates to California Department of Education (CDE) contractors about the federal Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act stipends that were allocated pursuant to Assembly Bill (AB) 82.

Expected Date to Receive Stipend Funding

The State Controller’s Office processed checks for the CRRSA stipend allocations on Friday, April 9, 2021, and mailed them to contractors Monday, April 12, 2021. The CDE anticipates that contractors will receive their stipend allocation as early as April 13, 2021.

As a reminder, funds provided via an apportionment payment to Local Education Agencies (LEAs), including charter schools, must be distributed through the county Treasurer, and LEAs should therefore contact their County Treasurer’s Office to coordinate the transfer of funds.

Timeframe for Issuing Second Round of Stipends

As communicated in the “Assembly Bill 82 – Stipend Guidance” released March 25, 2021 via the Early Learning and Care Division (ELCD) distribution list, CDE is preparing a second round of CRRSA stipends in order to capture any November 2020 enrollment data that was not provided by contractors at the time the first allocations were determined.

For Alternative Payment (AP) contractors, including Migrant AP, CalWORKs Stage 2, and Stage 3, the CDE has collected data to capture information related to children who were enrolled with multiple providers in the month of November 2020. This data was due back to the Child Development and Nutrition Fiscal Services (CDNFS) office April 9, 2021.

For Direct Service contractors, including California State Preschool (CSPP), General Childcare (CCTR), Migrant Childcare (CMIG), Children with Severe Disabilities (CHAN), and Family Childcare Home Networks (CFCC), the CDE will consider revisions to November 2020 caseload that have been submitted in the Child Development Management Information System (CDMIS) by Wednesday, April 14, 2021.

For Alternative Payment and Direct Service contractors, CDE expects contractors to receive an allocation, when applicable, in mid-May.

PCA and SACS Code Information

The CDE has been receiving questions about the Project Cost Account (PCA) and Standardized Account Code Structure (SACS) information related to CRRSA stipends. While CARES stipends had different PCAs and reference codes for each contract type, the CRRSA stipends are all paid from the same PCA and have the same SACS reference code. For all contract types receiving a CRRSA stipend, the PCA is 15555 with a SACS resource code of 5058. For further detail, contractors can visit the Standardized Account Code Structure query located on the CDE web page, which can be found at https://www.cde.ca.gov/Fg/ac/ac/.

Uses for Stipend Funding

Within the “Assembly Bill 82 – Stipend Guidance” communication released March 25, 2021 via the ELCD distribution list, the CDE provided guidance on the allowable use of stipend funding. It is important for contractors to also be aware of unallowable uses of these funds. Stipend funds shall not be expended for the purchase or improvement of land, or for the purchase, construction, or permanent improvement of any building or facility. However, funds may be expended for minor remodeling, and for upgrading child care facilities to assure that contractors meet State and local child care standards, including applicable health and safety requirements. Improvements or upgrades to a facility which are not specified under the federal definitions of construction or major renovation may be considered minor remodeling and are, therefore, not prohibited. For additional information on the allowable usage of federal funds for facilities, see 45 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 98.56(b) and definitions in 45 CFR § 98.2. Generally, contractors should be aware that stipend funds may be used for any allowable expense that would be reimbursable under a contractor’s existing child development contract to address COVID-19 costs or to ensure the programs are able to remain open or reopen.

If you have any questions regarding this letter, please contact your assigned fiscal analyst. The CDE Fiscal Analyst Directory web page can be found at https://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/aa/cd/faad.asp.

 

Last Reviewed: Friday, July 14, 2023

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