Prohibiting a person who has been convicted or adjudicated delinquent for committing certain serious crimes or who is the subject of a pending criminal charge or delinquency petition for committing a serious crime from being licensed, certified, or contracted with to provide child care, from being employed or contracted as a caregiver of a child care provider, or from being permitted to reside at a premises where child care is provided and making an appropriation

This bill prohibits any person who has been convicted or adjudicated delinquent on or after his or her 12th birthday for committing any of the following serious crimes or who is the subject of a pending criminal charge or delinquency petition alleging that the person has committed any of the following serious crimes on or after his or her 12th birthday from being licensed, certified, or contracted with to provide child care, from being employed or contracted as a caregiver of a child care provider, or from being permitted to be a nonclient resident of a premises where child care is provided and prohibits such a person from showing that he or she has been rehabilitated:

1. Any crime against children that is a felony, other than felony failure to pay child, spousal, or grandchild support or felony hazing.

2. Felony battery, if the victim is the spouse of the person.

3. First-degree or second-degree intentional or reckless homicide, felony murder, mayhem, felony sexual assault, reckless injury, taking hostages, kidnapping, felony endangering safety by use of a dangerous weapon, disarming a police officer, armed burglary, or armed robbery.

4. A violation of the background check law, if the violation involves the provision of false information to DCF, a county department, a contracted agency, a school board, or a child care provider.

5. An offense involving fraudulent activity as a participant in the Wisconsin Works Program, including as a recipient of a child care subsidy under that program, or as a recipient of aid to families with dependent children, medical assistance, food stamp benefits, supplemental security payments, payments for the support of children of supplemental security income recipients, or health care benefits under the Badger Care program.

6. Any drug or alcohol-related felony, felony battery, carjacking, or felony hazing, if committed not more than five years before the date of the background investigation.

7. Felony failure to pay child, spousal, or grandchild support, if committed not more than five years before the date of the background investigation, unless the person has paid all arrearages and is meeting his or her current support obligation.

Current law requires DCF, a county department, a contracting agency, or a school board, prior to licensing, certifying, or contracting with a child care provider and every four years after that, to conduct a criminal history search of the child care provider, of all nonclient residents of the premises where the child care is provided, and of all persons under 18 years of age who are caregivers of the child care provider and to obtain certain other information with respect to those individuals, specifically: 1) information from the client abuse registry maintained by the Department of Health Services (DHS); 2) information maintained by the Department of Regulation and Licensing regarding the individual's credentials; 3) information maintained by DCF regarding any substantiated reports of child abuse or neglect against the individual; and 4) information maintained by DHS regarding any denial of a license, certification, or contract to provide child care, of employment as a caregiver of a child care provider, or of permission to reside at a premises where child care is provided. Similarly, current law also requires a child care provider to conduct such a criminal history search and to obtain that information with respect to a caregiver 18 years of age or over prior to employing or contracting with the caregiver and every four years after that.

This bill requires DCF, a county department, a contracting agency, or a school board to conduct that criminal history search and to obtain that information with respect to a child care provider every three months after the child care provider is licensed, certified, or contracted with and to conduct that search and obtain that information with respect to a nonclient resident or caregiver under 18 years of age every year after the nonclient resident is permitted to reside at the premises or the caregiver is employed or contracted with. The bill also requires a child care provider to conduct that criminal history search and to obtain that information every year after a caregiver 18 years of age or over is employed or contracted with. In addition to conducting that criminal history search and obtaining that information, the bill requires DCF, a county department, a contracting agency, a school board, or an entity to obtain on those timetables information that is contained in the sex offender registry maintained by the Department of Corrections regarding whether the person has committed a sex offense that is a serious crime.

Under current law, DCF may revoke the license of a person to operate a day care center if the licensee or a person under the supervision of the licensee commits certain actions, including a repeated or substantial violation of a rule or order of DCF or of a condition of licensure or an action that directly threatens the health, safety, or welfare of any child under the care of the licensee. Similarly, under current law, DCF or a county department may refuse to pay a child care provider for child care provided under the Wisconsin Works Program if the child care provider, an employee of the child care provider, or a person living on the premises where child care is provided is convicted of a felony or misdemeanor that substantially relates to the care of children, is the subject of a pending charge that substantiality relates to the care of children, or has been determined to have abused or neglected a child.

This bill requires all of the following:

1. DCF to revoke the license of a day care center; DCF in a county having a population of 500,000 or more, a county department, or a contracted agency to revoke the certification of a day care provider for purposes of reimbursement under the Wisconsin Works Program; and a school board to rescind the contract of the person to operate a day care program; if the person licensed to operate the day care center, the person certified as a child care provider, or the person contracting to provide the day care program is convicted of a serious crime or if a caregiver or nonclient resident of the day care center, child care provider, or day care program is convicted or adjudicated delinquent for committing a serious crime on or after his or her 12th birthday. The bill also requires DCF or a county department to refuse to pay a child care provider in those circumstances beginning on the date of the conviction or delinquency adjudication.

2. DCF to immediately suspend the license of a day care center; DCF in a county having a population of 500,000 or more, a county department, or a contracted agency to immediately suspend the certification of a day care provider for purposes of reimbursement under the Wisconsin Works Program; and a school board to immediately suspend the contract of a person to operate a day care program; if the person licensed to operate the day care center, the person certified as a child care provider, or the person contracting to provide the day care program is the subject of a pending criminal charge alleging that the person has committed a serious crime or if a caregiver or nonclient resident of the day care center, child care provider, or day care program is the subject of a pending charge or delinquency petition alleging that the person has committed a serious crime on or after his or her 12th birthday.

The bill also requires DCF or a county department to immediately suspend payment to a child care provider for any child care provided under the Wisconsin Works Program in those circumstances until DCF or the county department obtains information regarding the final disposition of the charge or delinquency proceeding indicating that the person is not ineligible to receive such a payment.