LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – House Republicans hosted a conference to discuss details regarding the Michigan Child Development and Care (CDC) program indicating that many Michiganders have lost their funding without prior notice.

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“This was supposed to be about affordable child care but instead people are now getting put into debt because the Whitmer administration is not administering this child care program correctly,” House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) said. 

Representative Hall was joined by Representatives Tom Kunse (R-Clare) and Gina Johnsen (R-Lake Odessa) to share their concerns regarding the program’s functionality. 

“The Democrats and Whitmer are out there on the campaign trail saying we’re giving more child care to Michigan families, then the Free Press reports that these departments aren’t even administering it correctly so according to the story you see these families are told they’re eligible for a certain amount of months and then they go in there and find out after the fact that they have been cut in their benefits,” Leader Hall said, “So what happens is they are then hit with a bill for thousands of dollars they can’t afford for a program that they were told they were eligible for.”

During a Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Subcommittee meeting, the Republicans put forth a plan according to Hall that would require quicker electronic and mail notification of program terminations rather than months, and among other changes, put the program under one department.  

“All the Republicans voted yes, all the Democrats voted pass,” Hall continued, “We’re not gonna drop the ball on this, we’re gonna address this and make sure that Michigan families are getting the benefits that they need because affordable child care is so important to getting people into the workforce and making sure we’re taking care of kids.”

Representative Kunse also serves as Minority Vice Chair on the House Ethics and Oversight Committee and sent a letter to the Auditor General, Doug Ringler, regarding recent revelations about the program. 

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“I am writing to request an audit of Michigan’s Child Development and Care (CDC) program. This needs-based subsidy program, which helps families pay for child care, is administered by the Office of Great Start in the Department of Education but the Department of Health and Human Services determines a families eligibility.” 

He would also request that the Auditor General “examine the extent and causes” of several items as reported by the Detroit Free Press. 

• Caseworkers giving eligibility information (including, but not limited to, the number of child care house for which a family is eligible) to parents or providers that conflicts with official notice; 
• Erroneous termination or other change to a family’s eligibility; 
• Delayed notice of a termination or other eligibility change to parents or providers;
• The difficulty of getting information through the hotline (time spend on hold, days-long waits for a callback appointment, etc.); and 
• The lack of back payments to compensate for wrongful eligibility termination. 

“Let’s find a better way to administer this program, the money is there, this is just a travesty when it’s a bureaucratic nightmare and its affecting the kids, that’s not why we’re here,” Representative Kunse said, “This is a problem that should move right to the front and I hope they take this request seriously.” 

Representative Johnsen, also criticized the speed of communication for those in the program.  

“It’s a lack of communication, it’s a lack of oversight, it’s a lack diligence in several departments that have been mentioned and the communication breakdown is number one,” she said, “It takes parents hours and hours on hold just to reach somebody to verify that they still have the benefit that was promised them for the year.” 

While the amendment put forth in the DHHS Subcommittee failed, House Republicans shared their intentions to put forward a supplemental bill that would perform the tasks the supplemental bill would have accomplished according to Hall.