SOI 1250 NYC Legally Exempt Enrollment

The New York State Office of Children & Family Services (OCFS) announces a Solicitation of Interest (SOI) for qualified entities that are for not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organizations with experience regarding NYS child care regulations and statutes to express their interest in delivering legally exempt enrollment services as outlined in 18 NYCRR Part 415 for the five boroughs of New York City. Services will include all aspects related to the enrollment process for legally exempt child care providers. Please see the Eligibility Criteria section for additional information.

Statewide, in Federal Fiscal Year (FFY) 2025, approximately 219,000 children in 129,000 families received child care assistance. Approximately 64% of the children served were from NYC. Statewide, 38% of children were served in legally exempt settings, with nearly 4,300 legally exempt programs enrolled in NYC.

Scope of Work

The responsibilities of the selected enrollment agency will encompass the comprehensive management of legally exempt child care providers and families utilizing these providers in New York City, as outlined in 18 NYCRR Part 415 and related policies and procedures.
High level responsibilities include:

• Comprehensive evaluation of enrollment and re-enrollment application documents for accuracy and completeness, including verification of prior licensing/registration enforcement issues or parental rights termination. This also includes generating notices on application completeness and making enrollment decisions. The approximate number of new enrollments processed in 2025 was 1,556. The approximate number of re-enrollments processed in 2025 was 3,088.
• Conducting annual on-site inspections of legally exempt providers for Part 415 compliance, performing complaint-based and other inspections, and recording all inspection results in the Child Care Facility System (CCFS) within seven calendar days of completion. The approximate number of all inspection types conducted in 2025 was 1,085.
• Providing notices within timeframes required by regulation or as defined by OCFS, technical assistance, and corrective action plans to parents and providers regarding regulatory compliance, with the authority to terminate enrollment for non-compliance.
• Ongoing monitoring for adherence to all applicable Part 415 regulations, including basic health and safety standards and performing mandated criminal history review and background clearances for all required individuals.
• Conducting application reviews and on-site inspections (within 30 calendar days) for legally exempt group programs requesting enhanced rates.
• Providing technical assistance to families and enrolling providers related to enrollment processes, mandatory OCFS-approved training (pre-service and annual), compliance, and distributing OCFS-specified health and safety information.
• Processing, tracking, and maintaining accurate provider information in the Child Care Facility System (CCFS), the OCFS system of record, to facilitate regular communication regarding regulatory requirements.

Additional information regarding the scope of work can be found in the solicitation document.

Eligibility CriteriaInterested parties who meet the following criteria are eligible to respond:

• Be licensed to do business in the State of New York.
• Be a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
• Have a minimum of three (3) years of direct operational experience applying and interpreting NYS Child Care regulations and statutes, specifically 18 NYCRR Part 415 in the context of legally exempt child care services. This experience should involve the practical application of these regulations.
• Have a minimum of three (3) years of direct experience in performing legally exempt enrollment services, which may include, but is not limited to processing and evaluating enrollment applications, conducting annual and complaint-based inspections, implementing corrective action plans, and performing mandated criminal history review and background clearances.
• Agree that they possess the organizational capacity, including staff and management structures, to effectively deliver all components of this project for the approximate 4,300 legally-exempt programs enrolled in NYC, including recruitment, training, and retention of qualified personnel to perform legally exempt enrollment, inspection, and technical assistance services. Interested organizations should have approximately 60 staff available to dedicate to this project.
• Agree that they possess the technological capacity to effectively utilize and maintain accurate records within the Child Care Facility System (CCFS), the OCFS system of record, to ensure timely and accurate data entry, tracking, and reporting for the estimated 4,300 legally-exempt programs enrolled in NYC consistent with OCFS policies and procedures as stated in this solicitation’s Scope of Work.

Please refer to the solicitation document located on the "documents" tab for additional information and submission requirements.

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