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Kansas reinstates state childcare licensing and background-check fees after federal rollback
Summary
KDHE announced April 4 that state fees for childcare licensing and fingerprint background checks will take effect immediately after a U.S. Department of Education change ended a temporary federal waiver. KDHE will track application volume and fee receipts as providers respond.
TOPEKA, Kan., April 4 — The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) told the Children’s Cabinet on April 4 that state childcare licensing fees and fingerprint background-check fees are effective immediately after a federal change removed previously authorized waivers.
Derek Voorlog, KDHE bureau director for Family Health and Disease Control and Prevention, said the U.S. Department of Education canceled “previously approved late liquidation periods” that had supported fee waivers. KDHE notified providers April 3 and began collecting state licensing fees the following day.
Voorlog gave examples of typical state-level fee amounts: licensing fees commonly run about $75 plus roughly $1 per licensed slot depending on program type, and fingerprint/background-check fees (charged through Kansas Bureau of Investigation processes) are about $58 per person. KDHE said those costs had been covered by state or federal relief funds for roughly four years but that the agency now must collect them.
“We sent that letter out last night to child care providers and are beginning to collect fees this morning,” Voorlog said. He warned the Cabinet the requirement may present barriers for new providers and for renewals and said KDHE will track application volumes, fee receipts and the number of fingerprint/background-check requests to report back on impacts.
KDHE also provided related updates: a second regulatory packet for school-age and drop-in childcare programs remains with the Kansas Attorney General’s office (submitted Feb. 14) and intends to modernize health, safety and eligibility language so those programs can access child-care assistance. KDHE said initial interviews have concluded for the federal Preschool Development Grant (PDG) childcare-zone concept, which will fund local projects that must serve at least two full Kansas counties.
Amy Dean Kampmeier, co‑director for the Bureau of Family Health at KDHE, told the Cabinet Kansas will participate in the inaugural National Home Visiting Week and that Governor Laura Kelly signed a proclamation recognizing home visitors.
KDHE said it will collect and report data on fee receipts, processed background-check requests and any change in application volume as providers respond to the restored fees.
