Wisconsin Department of Children and Families - Division of Early Care and Education
Bureau of Child Care Subsidy Administration

Wisconsin Shares Handbook

16.5 Refusal to Authorize to a Provider

The local agency may refuse to issue an authorization to a provider if:

• The agency worker has verified that the provider currently has 2.5 or more authorizations per regulated slot

• A child care provider has a pending criminal charge alleging that they have committed a serious crime or have been convicted of committing a serious crime  

• The child care provider has been convicted or is charged with a crime for which the offense substantially relates to the care of children; or the department or local agency determines that the offense substantially relates to the operation of a business  

• The department or local agency reasonably suspects that the person has violated any provision under the Wisconsin Shares program  

• More than 40 percent of all children (including non-Shares children) enrolled at a specific location are children of the provider’s employees or children who live with the provider’s employees, and the provider fails to restore compliance within six (6) weeks after the Department or local agency determines that the provider has fallen below the required 60 percent threshold of qualifying children

Authorizations cannot be written unless:

• The child care provider submits their prices to the local agency

• The child care need matches the provider’s hours of operation

• The criteria in Chapter 14 Provider Requirements are met

This section last updated 7/1/2026