Wisconsin Department of Children and Families - Division of Early Care and Education
Bureau of Early Care Regulation
Child Care Certification Policy Manual
In accordance with DCF 202.04(6)(a), the county or tribal agency responsible for certification of a provider is determined by the geographic area in which the child care setting is located.
Counties have authority to certify providers within the geographical boundaries of the county. Tribal authority to certify typically includes providers who are tribal members or reside on tribal lands. In addition, a county or tribe can certify as a subcontractor to another certification agency as specified by contract.
Example 1: Subsidy administrative agency in County A approves a child care authorization (funding) for in-home care (care in the child’s home). The parent has a friend who is interested in providing the care for the children in the children’s home in County A. The friend lives in county B. County A must certify the home because the physical care is done in County A, even though the operator / provider resides in county B.
Example 2: An applicant for family child care certification lives in County C. The family she provides care for (in the provider’s home) lives in and has child care authorizations (child care funding) in County D. The agency responsible for certification of the child care provider would be County C because this is where the physical location of the child care is taking place.
Example 3: An applicant for certification is a tribal member and resides on tribal land. The applicant can choose to apply for certification with the local county or the tribal certification agency (if the tribe has a contract with DCF to administer certification).
This page last updated 01/2020.