1. (1) Eligibility is subject to the availability of funds. The Department may implement a Child Care Waitlist whenever the Department determines that sufficient funding is not available to sustain benefits for all of the applicants requesting ERDC benefits.
2. (2) The Department may activate or deactivate one or more of the exemption criteria in Section 3 of this rule. At minimum, the Department must allow a 30-day notice on the Department website when deactivating an exemption criteria.

3. (3) New applicants will be placed on the Child Care Waitlist unless the ERDC filing group meets the income limits in OAR 414-175-0050 and meets at least one active exemption listed in the following paragraphs:

   1. (a) Received a partial or full month of cash benefits from the Refugee (REF), State and Family Pre-SSI (SFPSS), or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) programs in the state of Oregon in at least one of the preceding three months.
   2. (b) Determined eligible for, and being placed in, a current opening in a Head Start program contracted slot, an Early Head Start Child Care Partnership contracted slot, or a Baby Promise program contracted slot.

   3. (c) The caretaker is currently working with Child Welfare as part of a Child Protective Services (CPS) assessment or open case and Child Welfare has determined the use of child care will:

      1. (A) Prevent removal of the child from their home;
      2. (B) Allow a child to be returned home; or
      3. (C) Allow for placement of the child with a relative or with an adult whom the child or the family of the child has an established relationship.
   4. (d) Determined eligible for Temporary Assistance to Domestic Violence Survivors (TA-DVS) program benefits from the state of Oregon in the current month or at least one of the preceding three months.
   5. (e) Was part of an ERDC filing group with a break in ERDC benefits of no more than two consecutive calendar months.
4. (4) When the Child Care Waitlist is in effect, the Department must place all applicants who are subject to the Child Care Waitlist under section (2) of this rule on the Child Care Waitlist for future selection. The Department sends these applicants a decision notice of ineligibility for the ERDC program.
5. (5) Each month, on the basis of an estimate of available funds, an appropriate number of individuals from the Child Care Waitlist are selected on a first-in and first-out basis and invited to apply for ERDC.

6. (6) After an individual is selected from the Child Care Waitlist, the individual must establish a date of request no later than 45 days after the date on the selection letter. The individual may request child care benefits from the Department:

   1. (a) Without completing a new application, when the previous application is within 45 days of its date of request; or
   2. (b) By submitting a new application for child care benefits to the Department in accordance with OAR 414-175-0005.

7. (7) The processing time frame for the ERDC application is the same as that specified in OAR 414-175-0005, except that:

   1. (a) If the Department does not receive a request for benefits within the deadline to apply, the individual is dropped from the Child Care Waitlist.
   2. (b) An individual who requests benefits after the 45-day deadline to apply (see section (5) of this rule) will be returned to the Child Care Waitlist.

8. (8) The Department may send periodic notices to individuals on the Child Care Waitlist to ensure that the list contains individuals who still want to receive ERDC benefits.

   1. (a) The Department shall allow at least 30 days for individuals to respond to the notice.
   2. (b) The Department may remove individuals from the Child Care Waitlist who indicate they no longer want ERDC benefits or who do not respond to the notice by the deadline.

Statutory/Other Authority

ORS 329A.500

Statutes/Other Implemented

ORS 329A.500

History

DELC 8-2026, amend filed 05/28/2026, effective 06/01/2026
DELC 5-2025, amend filed 06/25/2025, effective 07/01/2025
DELC 4-2025, minor correction filed 04/30/2025, effective 04/30/2025
DELC 139-2024, amend filed 12/11/2024, effective 01/01/2025
DELC 135-2024, temporary amend filed 09/25/2024, effective 10/16/2024 through 12/31/2024
DELC 11-2024, amend filed 02/28/2024, effective 03/01/2024
ELD 11-2023, adopt filed 06/28/2023, effective 07/01/2023