Bill C-303

1st Session, 39th Parliament,

55 Elizabeth II, 2006

house of commons of canada

BILL C-303

An Act to establish criteria and conditions in respect of funding for early learning and child care programs in order to ensure the quality, accessibility, universality and accountability of those programs, and to appoint a council to advise the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development on matters relating to early learning and child care

WHEREAS the primary objective of Canadian child care policy is to promote early childhood development and well-being and support the participation of parents in employment or training and community life by providing accessible, universal and high-quality early learning and child care programs and services;

NOW, THEREFORE, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE

1. This Act may be cited as the Early Learning and Child Care Act.

INTERPRETATION

2. The definitions in this section apply in this Act.

“child care transfer payment” means a cash contribution or financial transfer in respect of early learning and child care services that may be provided under an Act of Parliament to a province, territory, institution or corporate entity.

“early learning and child care program” means a program established by and regulated under the law of a province or territory to provide publicly-funded early learning and child care services.

“early learning and child care service” means a service provided under the early learning and child care program of a province or territory by an individual or institution, such as a full or part-day child care centre, nursery school, preschool, parent support program, child drop-in program or family child care service.

“Minister” means the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.

PURPOSE

3. The purpose of this Act is to establish criteria and conditions that must be met before a child care transfer payment may be made in support of the early learning and child care program of a province or territory.

EXEMPTION

4. Recognizing the unique nature of the jurisdiction of the Government of Quebec with regard to the education and development of children in Quebec society, and notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the Government of Quebec may choose to be exempted from the application of this Act and, notwithstanding any such decision, shall receive the full transfer payment that would otherwise be paid under section 5.

CHILD CARE TRANSFER PAYMENTS

5. (1) The Minister of Finance may make a child care transfer payment directly to a province or territory in each fiscal year to support the early learning and child care program of the province or territory if

(a) the operator of the program is account-able to the government of the province or territory for the administration and operation of the program; and

(b) the program provides early learning and child care services that meet the requirements set out in section 6 and establishes a plan for providing comprehensive early learning and child care services that are of a high quality, universal and accessible.

(2) In order to satisfy the criterion relating to accountability, the early learning and child care program of a province or territory must be directly administered by the provincial or territorial government or by an institution that is operated on a not-for-profit basis and that

(a) is appointed or designated by the government of the province or territory;

(b) reports to that government in respect of the administration and operation of the program; and

(c) is subject to a public audit of its accounts and financial transactions by the authority that is responsible under provincial or territorial law for auditing the accounts of that government.

(3) In order to satisfy the criterion relating to quality, the early learning and child care program of a province or territory must establish

(a) standards that specify the professional qualifications and certification required of persons employed in early learning and child care services and that provide for the recruitment, training, support, compensation and retention of those persons;

(b) standards that relate to the environment in which early learning and child care services are provided, including standards that

(i) specify child-to-caregiver ratios and restrictions on group size, and

(ii) protect the health and ensure the safety of children and employees; and

(c) standards that ensure that early learning and child care services support the cognitive, emotional and social development of children.

(4) In order to satisfy the criterion relating to universality, the early learning and child care program of a province or territory must ensure that all children resident in the province or territory are equally entitled to early learning and child care services that are appropriate to their needs.

(5) In order to satisfy the criterion relating to accessibility, the early learning and child care program of a province or territory must ensure that

(a) early learning and child care services are provided on terms and conditions that ensure reasonable access to those services by any child, including children with special needs; and

(b) payment for early learning and child care services is required in accordance with a tariff or system of payment authorized under the law of the province or territory.

6. In order to be considered early learning and child care services for the purposes of section 5, the services must be

(a) provided on a not-for-profit basis by an individual, agency, organization or government body authorized under provincial or territorial law to provide such services; or

(b) provided on a for-profit basis by an individual, agency, organization or government body authorized under provincial or territorial law to provide such services if that individual, agency, organization or body provided those services on a for-profit basis before the coming into force of this Act and continues to provide those services on a for-profit basis after the coming into force of this Act.

7. When advised by the Minister that the early learning and child care program of a province or territory did not satisfy a criterion or condition set out in section 5 or 6 in a fiscal year, the Governor in Council may, where it considers it appropriate, direct that all or a portion of any child care transfer payment to that province or territory for the following fiscal year be withheld.

REPORT TO PARLIAMENT

8. (1) At the end of each fiscal year, the Minister shall prepare a report examining the provision of child care services in each province and territory during that fiscal year in relation to the criteria set out in section 5 and shall cause the report to be laid before each House of Parliament within 60 days after the end of the fiscal year or, if that House is not then sitting, on any of the first 15 days next thereafter that that House is sitting.

(2) The report shall contain a summary of all information in the possession of the Minister that relates to the extent to which the early learning and child care programs and services of each province and territory met the criteria set out in section 5 during the fiscal year, including but not limited to

(a) a description of the early learning and child care program in each province and territory and of the services provided by the program during that fiscal year;

(b) the amount expended by the government of each province and territory during that fiscal year on behalf of the early learning and child care program;

(c) indicators of availability, such as an analysis of the number of spaces in early learning and child care settings available during that fiscal year by age of child and type of setting;

(d) indicators of affordability, such as average service fees charged as a percentage of average wages in each province and territory;

(e) indicators of quality, such as training requirements, child-to-caregiver ratios, group size and provisions and facilities relating to health, safety and the physical environment; and

(f) indicators of accessibility, such as eligi-bility criteria and numbers of children receiving subsidies, income levels of parents of children enrolled in early learning and child care services, percentage of children with special needs enrolled and numbers of children receiving services by urban, surburban and rural regions.

REGULATIONS

9. The Governor in Council may make regulations for the purpose of carrying out the administration of this Act and for carrying its purposes and provisions into effect, including regulations respecting the information the Minister may require for the purpose of reporting to Parliament under section 8.

ADVISORY COUNCIL

10. (1) The Minister shall appoint an advisory council consisting of 18 members who support the purposes of this Act and are broadly representative of persons and organizations interested in and involved with early learning and child care from all regions of Canada, including representatives of provincial and territorial governments and of organizations that act on behalf of early learning and child care service providers, child care professionals, parents and children.

(2) The Minister shall choose the members of the advisory council from a list of candidates prepared through a public and transparent process and submitted by the standing committee of the House of Commons that normally considers matters related to human resources and social development.

(3) The advisory council may, as it considers appropriate from time to time, make a report to any standing committee of either House of Parliament, or provide advice or recommendations or make a report to the Minister, in respect of any matter that relates to the administration, operation and effectiveness of this Act, including the extent to which the objectives of this Act are being achieved.

(4) Any report made to a standing committee and any report, recommendation and advice provided to the Minister by the advisory council shall be included in the Minister’s annual report to Parliament under section 8.