(a) To the extent that funding is made available for this purpose through the annual Budget Act, the alternative payment agency in each county shall design, maintain, and administer a system to consolidate local child care waiting lists so as to establish a countywide centralized eligibility list. In those counties with more than one alternative payment agency, the agency that also administers the resource and referral program shall have the responsibility of developing, maintaining, and administering the countywide centralized eligibility list. In those counties with more than one alternative payment agency and more than one resource and referral program, the State Department of Education shall establish a process to select the agency to develop, maintain, and administer the countywide centralized eligibility list.

(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), in those counties in which a countywide centralized eligibility list exists, as of the date that the act adding this section is enacted, the entity administering that list may receive funding, instead of the entity specified under subdivision (a).

(c) Each centralized eligibility list shall include all of the following:

(1) Family characteristics, including ZIP Code of residence, ZIP Code of employment, monthly income, and size.

(2) Child characteristics, including birth date and whether the child has special needs.

(3) Service characteristics, including reason for need, whether full-time or part-time service is requested, and whether after hours or weekend care is requested.

(d) Information collected for the centralized eligibility list shall be reported to the Superintendent of Public Instruction on an annual basis on the date and in the manner determined by the State Department of Education.

(e) (1) To be eligible to enter into an agreement with the department to provide subsidized child care, a contractor shall participate in and use the centralized eligibility list.

(2) A contractor with a campus child care and development program operating pursuant to Section 66060, migrant child care and development program operating on a seasonal basis pursuant to Section 8230, or program serving severely handicapped children pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 8250 and who has a local site waiting list shall submit eligibility list information to the centralized eligibility list administrator for any parent seeking subsidized child care for whom these programs are not able to provide child care and development services. A child care and development contractor or program described in this paragraph may utilize any waiting lists developed at its local site to fill vacancies for its specific population. Families enrolled from a local site waiting list shall be enrolled pursuant to Section 8263.

(Added by Stats. 2005, Ch. 78, Sec. 1. Effective July 19, 2005.)