What are waiver requests?

In the CCDBG Act, Congress gave the Secretary of HHS the option to waive (extend the effective date) new statutory provisions or penalties for States and Territories up to 3 years to allow time to come into compliance or in cases of extraordinary circumstances.  OCC determined that if a State or Territory is not going to be in compliance with one or more provisions by the deadline required in the Act, then the State/Territory must request a temporary extension/waiver as well as complete an implementation plan.  The Act requires that State and Territories submit waiver requests to ACF in writing.  The written request must:

• detail each sanction or provision that the State seeks relief from;
• describe how a waiver from that sanction or provision will, by itself, improve the delivery of child care services for children in the State/Territory;
• certify that the health, safety, and well-being of children served through assistance received through CCDF will not be compromised as a result of the waiver; and
• describe one or more conflicting or duplicative requirement(s) preventing the effective delivery of child care services to justify the waiver; extraordinary circumstances, such as a natural disaster or financial crisis; or an extended period of time for a State legislature to enact legislation to implement the provision of the Act.

Current waiver requests reviewed by ACF were addressed in the State/Territory conditional approval letter. The OCC expects additional requests to be submitted as States/Territories move forward with implementation. Waiver requests to ACF must be submitted by the designated official authorized to act on behalf of the Lead Agency.  ACF must respond to the State/Territory within 90 days after the receipt of the request.