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Office of the Inspector General - Licensing Division - Family Child Care Unit - June 25, 2026

This newsletter is intended for delegated county FCC licensing workers and supervisors. It includes important updates and a summary of information from the monthly FCC Licensor Call.

June 2026 Family Child Care Licensor Link Newsletter

June 25, 2026

• June 18, 2026, Licensor Call guest speaker – Deputy State Fire Marshal
• 2025 Legislative outcomes updates
• 2026 Legislation Passed: Revised Child Care Licensing Standards
• Changes to Conditional License Monitoring Effective July 1
• Mid-year reminder
• Serious Injury Report (SIR) and Quarterly Progress Report (QRP) – Quarter 2 reports due
• Rule 13 Process training opportunity – July 10, 2026
• Special Family Child Care training opportunity – August 3, 2026
• AHT Roundtable Training – August 13, 2026
• Foundations Training – next series offered in September 2026
• Statewide office hours with DCYF
• 3rd Thursday licensor call
• ELICI monthly workshop
• Early Childhood Connector Call on July 14
• Develop log-in reminders

June 18, 2026, Licensor Call guest speaker – Deputy State Fire Marshal

On Thursday, June 18, during the monthly Licensor Call, Deputy State Fire Marshal Dustin Icks joined to share updates on the revised process for requesting a fire inspection.

Beginning July 1, 2026, all inspection request paperwork and the required inspection fee/bank check (made payable to MN State Fire Marshal) must be mailed directly to the State Fire Marshal Division.

DCYF is creating a revised request form, which will be posted in the FCC Licensor Library as soon as it is finalized.

2025 Legislative outcomes updates

We have updated the 2025 Legislative Implementation Plan, and the amended version will be available on our website in the coming weeks.

At June licensor call, we discussed areas that will have updates. These included:

• Interpretive Guidance
  • Beginning July 1, 2026, license holders may request interpretive guidance from the Department on a current rule or statute prior to requesting reconsideration of a correction order. Providers may request interpretive guidance from the Department using a form posted on the family child care licensing webpage.  

• Direction to the Commissioner to establish timeframes for county licensors to respond to time sensitive or urgent requests.
  • These timelines will be published in the 2025 Implementation Plan update and are aligned with responses to complaints already outlined in rule.

• Requirement to complete ELICI checklists in the field.
  • Licensors are required to use the ELICI checklist during licensing inspections and complete the checklist to the best of their ability while onsite at the licensed family child care program.
    • In some situations, licensors may need additional consultation with county staff or DCYF before finalizing certain checklist items or determining whether a correction order is necessary. In those cases, licensors may leave the program to confirm decisions but should clearly communicate this to the provider before leaving the site. The licensor and provider must also establish a plan for follow-up communication and completion of the exit interview, which may be conducted offsite by direct phone call. 

2026 Legislation Passed: Revised Child Care Licensing Standards

The 2026 Legislative Session ended on May 18, with revised child care licensing standards passed in SF 4612 and signed into law on May 26. The new standards take effect July 1, 2027. DCYF has begun implementation work and will provide monthly updates to the listserv. Current licensing requirements remain in place until the new rules take effect. For questions or comments, email ccregmodernization.DCYF@state.mn.us.

Changes to Conditional License Monitoring Effective July 1

As a reminder, updates to the Family Child Care conditional license monitoring process become effective July 1, 2026.

Under the updated process, counties will be required to complete and submit a conditional order monitoring plan for providers issued a conditional license order on or after July 1, 2026. The monitoring plan documents how the county will monitor the license holder’s compliance with each term of the conditional order.

The conditional order monitoring plan form is linked here:

https://www.dhs.state.mn.us/main/groups/county_access/documents/pub/MNDHS-075562.pdf

If you have not yet attended training on the new process, we strongly encourage you to participate in an upcoming session. The next FCC-Investigations, Licensing Actions & Conditional Monitoring training is scheduled for September 25, 2026. This is an all-day virtual training and includes information on the updated conditional monitoring process and monitoring plan requirements.

Questions may be directed to FCC triage at dcyf.fcclicensing@state.mn.us

Mid-year reminder

As we reach mid‑year, this is a reminder that, each year, all licensed programs must receive their unannounced, annual review, with documentation completed in ELICI.

ELICI links directly to Licensing Information Lookup, ensuring families and the public have access to current licensing information. When annual visits are not completed in ELICI, important information is missing from public view and county and state compliance with federal requirements is affected.

At this point in the year, licensors should ideally be halfway through their annual review caseload. If you are unsure of your progress or would like help tracking it, please reach out— upon request, staff can pull a report to help you see where things stand.

Serious Injury Report (SIR) and Quarterly Progress Report (QRP) – Quarter 2 reports due

Please submit your county/agency second-quarter reports (April – June 2026) by using the following links for 2026 data: 

• Serious Injury Report (SIR) Link to Serious Injury Data form    
• Quarterly Progress Report (QPR) Most information needed for this report can be found in your Complaint Log. Link to Quarterly Progress Report form  

If you have questions about requirements, please contact Triage for support. 

Please remember: Use the designated 2026 form links for each report—do not submit report information via email. 

Rule 13 Process training opportunity – July 10, 2026

DCYF will host a Rule 13 training on July 10, 2026, to walk through the Rule 13 review process in detail. Registration is available through TrainLink. If you have any questions, please reach out to Triage.

Overview of 2026 Rule 13 Review Structure Changes

Beginning in 2026, DCYF updated the structure of Rule 13 reviews.

Full Recertification Reviews:

• Occur once every four years.
• Take place in person.
• DCYF sends advance notice to counties and request some information beforehand.
• The full file review and exit interview is completed in person at the county being reviewed.

Mid-Term Reviews:

• Continue to occur every two years.
• Shifted to a modified format with a strong focus on ELICI compliance.
• DCYF sends advance notice and requests materials ahead of time.
• A virtual exit interview is scheduled with county partners to discuss compliance concerns.

Special Family Child Care training opportunity – August 3, 2026

DCYF invites you to learn more about the specific requirements of a Special Family Child Care License. This virtual training will be held on Monday, August 3, 2026, from 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. To register, visit TrainLink.

AHT Roundtable Training – August 13, 2026

On Thursday, August 13, 2026, from 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m., join DCYF FCC as we explore the Abusive Head Trauma (AHT) curriculum that license holders receive during their required, in‑person AHT training, completed every other year.

Registration is available through TrainLink. If you have any questions, please reach out to Triage.

Foundations Training – next series offered in September 2026

Foundations training is required for all new licensing staff before they begin licensing work and must be completed within 90 days of hire.

If you have an employee who needs FCC Foundations, please reach out to Triage.

Until further notice, Foundations will be limited to new licensors only, while we work to train all licensors on the FCC revised standards.

Statewide office hours with DCYF

Think of these sessions as live triage, hosted by the Family Child Care Licensing team. The purpose of these sessions is to answer questions, listen to comments, and problem-solve together regarding the unique situations that we encounter.

These office hours are open-house style, meaning attendees can come and go as needed. DCYF will not be preparing content for each session so please come with questions and comments regarding FCC licensing.

If you have not received an invite to join, please reach out to DCYF FCC Triage.

• Tuesday, July 7 | 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
• Tuesday, August 4 | 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

3rd Thursday licensor call

DCYF FCC Licensing will provide information and updates during this call and be available for questions. If you have not received an invite to join, please reach out to DCYF FCC Triage.

• Thursday, July 16 | 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
• Thursday, August 20 | 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.

ELICI monthly workshop

The ELICI tool’s purpose is to ensure consistent compliance monitoring throughout the state.

DCYF has planned monthly workshops to support counties with their ongoing compliance with the requirement to use the ELICI tool to do licensing work in Minnesota. We value our partnership with counties and encourage feedback and suggestions to inform these workshop sessions.

Here is the link to the ELICI manual: https://mn.gov/dhs/assets/ELICI-user-guide_tcm1053-376631.pdf 

• Monday, July 27 | 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
• Monday, August 24 | 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

For calls, office hours and ELICI workshops, you should receive an invite with a link to join. If you are not getting these invites, please contact Triage.

Early Childhood Connector Call on July 14

Join us on July 14, 2026, from 7-8 p.m. for the summer Connector Call!

Connector Calls are a great opportunity to get your questions answered and seek clarification. During the call, state staff will answer questions related to legislation, licensing, programs, grants and more. Early educators of all types, from licensed programs to Family, Friend and Neighbor caregivers, are invited.

Link to join the call: https://minnesota.webex.com/minnesota/j.php?MTID=m0a3b65777c34458eb8ab5…

Please submit your questions by June 30th. Questions must be submitted beforehand; new questions will not be answered during the call. Qualtrics Survey | Qualtrics Experience Management

Calls are recorded and temporarily available to those unable to attend. Visit the Early Childhood Connector website to learn more about Connector Calls and the Early Childhood Connector Newsletter. 

Develop log-in reminders

Users must log-in to Develop at least every 30 days or an email will be sent from Develop. It is advised to log-in right then, when reminded. If it gets to 60 days, the account access will be deactivated.

If your account is deactivated, please contact lisa.mills@state.mn.us for help with reactivation. If there are general issues with your Develop account (password reset, how to access, etc.), contact the Develop help desk at support@develophelp.zendesk.com.