Administration for Children and Families March 18, 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This proposed rule would amend Head Start program regulations to codify statutory eligibility requirements for Head Start and Early Head Start program enrollment and strengthen procedures to determine, verify, certify, and maintain records regarding eligibility for Head Start and Early Head Start program enrollment. It also proposes to create new requirements for the person seeking services to certify in a signed and dated statement that the documents and information that the person provided concerning eligibility are accurate to the best of the person's knowledge, as well as new requirements for program staff who make the eligibility determination to certify in a signed and dated statement that the information on eligibility in the file is accurate to the best of the person's knowledge, and based on that information, the person has determined the pregnant woman or child to be eligible for services. In addition, it proposes to create a new requirement for agencies to establish policies and procedures describing the actions that will be taken against staff who violate eligibility determination requirements and requires agencies to provide training related to eligibility requirements and the legal consequences of committing fraud. The intent of this rule is to reduce substantially the risk that children or pregnant women who are ineligible for participation in Head Start or Early Head Start programs are enrolled in these programs.