§ 4–902. Child Care Bureau established; organization; duties of executive director.

(a) There is established within the District government a Child Care Bureau (“Bureau”). The Bureau shall provide the District government a single administrative unit, responsible to the Mayor, to implement the provisions of this chapter and other programs that may be delegated to it by the Mayor of the District of Columbia (“Mayor”) to promote child care.

(b) The Bureau shall be headed by an executive director, who shall be appointed by the Mayor within 90 days after February 24, 1987. The executive director shall devote full time to the duties of the office. In addition, there shall be made available to the executive director out of the budget for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1987, resources for staff necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter. For subsequent fiscal years, the Mayor shall propose a budget adequate for the operation of the Bureau.

(1) Serve as an advocate for child care in the District of Columbia;

(2) Develop recommendations for a central child care policy and a comprehensive plan for addressing child care needs in the District;

(3) Provide an ongoing mechanism to increase the coordination and the sharing of information among the various agencies currently sharing responsibilities for child care, as well as the various commissions and advisory boards involved in the delivery of child care services;

(4) Develop an analysis and forecast of child care needs in the District government;

(5) Identify areas of need for service or improvement of service and bring them to the attention of the Mayor, with suggestions for meeting these needs, including conducting or funding research and demonstration projects to test the suggestions;

(6) Provide information and technical assistance with respect to programs and services for child care to the Mayor, other District government agencies and departments, and the community including, when necessary, contracting for consultant assistance outside the District government;

(7) Evaluate present laws, regulations, procedures, and existing public and private programs, their capacities and program models, and make recommendations to the Mayor for improvement;

(8) Review and comment on proposed District and federal legislation, regulations, policies, and programs, and make policy recommendations on health, safety, and quality issues as they relate to child care;

(9) File with the Mayor and with the Council an annual report on the operation of the Bureau to include information developed pursuant to paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) of this subsection, as well as an analysis of child care needs, and make it available to the public;

(10) Publish a directory to be revised at least every 2 years, of child care services available to District residents through the District government, including, to the maximum extent possible, sources of nonpublic assistance and programs for child care in the District; and

(11) Assure necessary control, evaluation, audit, and reporting on programs funded through the Bureau.