Daycare providers still waiting for payment

The month of April is almost through, yet members of the CNMI Daycare Association are still waiting for their March payments as promised by the Department of Community and Cultural Affairs.

According to CNMI Daycare Association president Masina Leuta, DCCA was contacted “so many times” to inquire about their payments and was finally told that the checks had already been mailed out and they should expect them by April 24.

“Its already April 28. April is almost through and until now, we have not received them,” Leuta said.

Earlier this month, daycares were forced to withhold services to recipients of the childcare certificates until they received their February payments owed them by the program.

According to Leuta, after much discussion with the childcare program’s new lead agency, daycare providers started taking in children of the childcare program when they finally received their February checks.

He said, “Yes, we received them but there so many deductions made onto them. We want to know where those deductions came from.”

Acting Secretary Melvin Faisao said that DCCA conducted payment computation training for childcare center-based providers at the Office of Aging Conference Room last week. Twelve center-based providers attended the training.

Faisao said that the training course was on computing subsidy assistance. “Training even covers relevant factors that may contribute to lesser payment for the providers from the subsidy, such as holidays and when parents are not working or attending school as actual computation is implemented; and the required types of document that providers must have the parents officiate before submission, such as child weekly attendance sheets,” he said.

Faisao said that relative childcare providers would also be accorded the same training in the coming days.

Leuta complained, however, that “so many things are being done differently now and so many requirements are being asked from us.”

“We are all just really confused right now. When the program was under the PSS [Public School System] for 15 years, they never deducted so much and never required so much—why only now?” Leuta asked.

He acknowledged that DCCA had informed the childcare providers of the requirements. “They told us that the Attorney General was consulted and that everything in the book must be followed according to the state plan. My concern is that, if it was always under the state plan, why did PSS never implement it?” Leuta asked.

Faisao said that payments to childcare providers were rendered through mails.

“If there were pending payments, it is because the W-9 forms and billings were not submitted within the three first days of the month by the providers but usually DCCA initiates immediate follow up with affected parents or providers to help allay further delays,” Faisao said.

He added that, “DCCA supports policies or benchmarks that provide high-quality early learning opportunities for all young children of Commonwealth communities.”