Program integrity.

§ 98.68 Program integrity. (a) Lead Agencies are required to describe in their Plan effective internal controls that are in place to ensure integrity and accountability, while maintaining continuity of services, in the CCDF program. These shall include: (1) Processes to ensure sound fiscal management; (2) Processes to identify areas of risk; (3) Processes to train child care providers and staff of the Lead Agency and other agencies engaged in the administration of CCDF about program requirements and integrity; and (4) Regular evaluation of internal control activities. (b) Lead Agencies are required to describe in their Plan the processes that are in place to: (1) Identify fraud or other program violations, which may include, but are not limited to the following: (i) Record matching and database linkages; (ii) Review of attendance and billing records; (iii) Quality control or quality assurance reviews; and (iv) Staff training on monitoring and audit processes. (2) Investigate and recover fraudulent payments and to impose sanctions on clients or providers in response to fraud. (c) Lead Agencies must describe in their Plan the procedures that are in place for documenting and verifying that children receiving assistance under this part meet eligibility criteria at the time of eligibility determination and redetermination. Because a child meeting eligibility requirements at the most recent eligibility determination or redetermination is considered eligible during the period between redeterminations as described in § 98.21(a)(1): (1) The Lead Agency shall pay any amount owed to a child care provider for services provided for such a child during this period under a payment agreement or authorization for services; and (2) Any CCDF payment made for such a child during this period shall not be considered an error or improper payment under subpart K of this part due to a change in the family's circumstances, as set forth at § 98.21(a). [81 FR 67591, Sept. 30, 2016]