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December 8, 2023 CERTIFIED MAIL Cynthia Kaumans 703 Gilbert Avenue Park Rapids, MN 56470 License Number 1063641 FCC ORDER LIFTING TEMPORARY IMMEDIATE SUSPENSION ORDER OF CONDITIONAL LICENSE ORDER TO PAY A FINE Dear Ms. Kaumans: Based on the recommendation of Hubbard County Social Service Center (Hubbard County), the Department of Human Services (DHS) is lifting the temporary immediate suspension issued on October 13, 2023, and placing your license to provide family child care at 703 Gilbert Avenue, Park Rapids, MN on conditional status for two years, beginning December 8, 2023. This means you must meet certain conditions to maintain your license, detailed below. This order is based on your level of noncompliance with family child care licensing requirements. Our next steps and your options are also provided below. In addition, DHS is ordering you to pay a fine of $200. Details of our findings are provided below. REASON FOR THE CONDITIONAL LICENSE 1. Commissioner’s evaluation of program In determining whether a licensing action is warranted, DHS evaluated the facts, conditions, and circumstances concerning your program’s operation. This includes consideration of the well-being of children in your program, available evaluations from consumers of your program, and information about the qualifications of caregivers working in your program. DHS has determined that it is appropriate to place your license on conditional status based on the violations identified below and the program evaluation. On October 12, 2023, a household member was found alone in an unlicensed space with a child in care. The household member and the child were not fully clothed when found. You failed to notify Hubbard County that this individual had moved in, you knowingly allowed children in unlicensed space, and you failed to provide required supervision. To ensure the safety of the children in your care, a conditional license and a fine are being issued. You must meet the terms outlined below. Legal Authority: Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.04, subdivision 6. 2. Failure to comply with licensing laws and rules As a result of previous licensing visits, Hubbard County determined that your program failed to comply with the laws and rules for licensed family child care. DHS has considered the nature, chronicity, and severity of these violations, which are provided below. Legal Authority: Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 1. Nature, history and severity of violations New violations determined On October 13, 2023, Hubbard County conducted a licensing investigation of your licensed program. The following are new violations that have not been the subject of a previous correction order. If you appeal this order, the following violations will be reviewed as a part of the appeal. DHS considered these violations as a factor when it determined that a Conditional License is appropriate. 1. On October 13, 2023, Hubbard County determined that you failed to provide required supervision when a child enrolled in your program was found in an unlicensed space of the home with a household member not fully clothed. Rule Violated: Minnesota Rules, part 9502.0315, subpart 29a and Minnesota Rules, part 9502.0365, subpart 5. 2. On October 13, 2023, Hubbard County determined that you failed to report a change in household membership when a minor family member moved in. The licensor made note that this individual was at your residence in June of 2023. Rule Violated: Minnesota Rules, part 9502.0375, subpart 2. 3. On October 13, 2023, Hubbard County determined that you knowingly allowed children to play in space that is not licensed for family child care use when you admitted that you allow them to play in the basement and have been allowing this since mid-summer 2023. Statute Violated: Minnesota Statute, 245A.04 subdivision 7a. Previous licensing actions The following violations summarize the nature of your previous licensing violations. Because these violations are now conclusive, the individual violations are not within the scope of your appeal rights. Please refer to the previously issued correction orders for further details on these violations. If you do not have copies of these orders, contact your Hubbard County licensor for assistance. DHS also considered this history as a factor when it determined that a Conditional License is appropriate. On June 16, 2023, Hubbard County made a licensing visit to your family child care program. As a result of that visit, you were issued a correction order for the following citations. DHS considered the below violations as a factor when it determined that a Conditional License is appropriate. o You failed to operate within your distribution limits when you operated over total capacity by one child. o You failed to ensure that toxic substances were inaccessible to children when cleaning products were on the floor in the playroom. o You failed to follow required handwashing procedures when children did not wash their hands before snack. o You failed to ensure that policies and procedures were easily available to staff when you failed to index the policies and procedures with a table of contents or other approved method. o You failed to maintain or store records in a way that allowed the licensor to review them when you didn’t have records for two staff and one helper. o You failed to obtain written consent for two children prior to use of a wading pool. o You failed to provide maltreatment reporting policies to one family in care. o You failed to provide documentation of training on the emergency preparedness plan. o You failed to provide documentation required when a substitute provided care. o You failed to obtain all required information prior to admission of one child. o You failed to maintain and keep up to date records for one child. o You failed to ensure that admission and arrangement forms had all required information on them when information was missing on the forms. o You failed to provide immunization records for one child. o You failed to follow crib safety requirements when there was a tear, hole, or loose thread in the mesh or fabric side of the crib. On June 11, 2019, Hubbard County made a licensing visit to your family child care program. As a result of that visit, you were issued a correction order for the following citations. DHS considered the below violations as a factor when it determined that a Conditional License is appropriate. o You failed to provide documentation of annual child development and behavior guidance training as required. o You failed to provide documentation of 16 hours of annual training as required. o You failed to provide documentation of sudden unexpected infant death (SUID)/abusive head trauma (AHT) training as required. o You failed to obtain all required information prior to admission of one child. o You failed to obtain updated immunization records for infants and preschool children in care. Severity of violations Due to the serious and chronic nature of these violations, and the conditions in the program, which impact the health and safety of children in your care, your license to provide family child care is placed on conditional status. Conditional License Terms In addition to the licensing rules and statutes for family child care, you are required to comply with the following terms: 1. You must follow and comply with all applicable Minnesota Rules and Laws. 2. No variances to age distribution or capacity will be granted during the conditional period. 3. You must comply with the written supervision plan that you submitted to Hubbard County on December 4, 2023. 4. You must work with Hubbard County to obtain a mentor to work on ensuring adequate health and safety of children in care. 5. You must obtain a minimum of six hours of additional training in the content area of active supervision within 60 days of this order. The training is in addition to the annual training requirements as listed in Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.50. Prior to attending training, you must obtain approval from Hubbard County that the training is appropriate. You must submit documentation of your attendance to Hubbard County. 6. You must either provide a copy of the Order to Pay a Fine and Conditional License to parents of children in care or document that all parents have been given an opportunity to review the Order. You must obtain parent signatures of each currently enrolled child, indicating they have either received a copy of the Order or had an opportunity to review the Order. You must provide this documentation to Hubbard County by January 8, 2024. For new families, you must submit documentation of compliance with this term to Hubbard County within 5 days of any child’s admission to your child care program. Ongoing Monitoring Your Hubbard County licensor will monitor your compliance with these terms and with all of the family child care rules and laws. This will include unannounced visits. If you fail to demonstrate substantial compliance with family child care requirements or with the terms of your conditional license that are provided above, DHS may take an additional licensing sanction, including a revocation of your license. REASON FOR FINE Supervision Violation As a result of an investigation conducted on October 13, 2023, Hubbard County determined that you failed to provide required when a child enrolled in your program was found in an unlicensed space of the home with a household member not fully clothed. Rule Violated: Minnesota Rules, part 9502.0315, subpart 29a and Minnesota Rules, part 9502.0365, subpart 5. Fine: $200 YOUR APPEAL/RECONSIDERATION RIGHTS If You Wish to Appeal the Fine and the Conditional License, or Just the Fine You have the right to appeal both the fine and the conditional license, or only the fine. Your request must be in writing and clearly state that you are requesting a contested case hearing for this matter. Your request must be made before the deadlines provided below. If you do not meet this deadline, you lose your right to an administrative appeal. The timeline to appeal began when you received this order. If you are mailing your request, it must be sent by certified mail and postmarked within 10 calendar days from when you receive this order. Please send it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Legal Counsel’s Office Attention: Licensing Legal Unit PO Box 64953 St. Paul, MN 55164-0953 If your request is being personally delivered, it must be received by DHS within 10 calendar days from when you receive this order. Please bring it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Legal Counsel’s Office Attention: Licensing Legal Unit 444 Lafayette Road North St. Paul, MN 55155 Upon DHS’ receipt of your timely appeal, your case would be scheduled for a contested case hearing in front of an Administrative Law Judge. Following this hearing, the Commissioner of DHS will issue a final order. If You Wish to Only Appeal the Conditional License If you are not appealing the fine, you do not have a right to a contested case hearing. However, you have the right to request reconsideration of the conditional license and the cited violations. Your request must: · Be in writing · Clearly state that you are requesting reconsideration of the conditional license · List each citation you are challenging and identify what is inaccurate or incomplete about the information in the order · Supply information that is accurate or more complete · State why you believe your license should not be on a conditional status · Be made before the deadlines provided below If you are mailing your request, it must be sent by certified mail and postmarked within 10 calendar days from when you received this order. If you do not meet this deadline, you lose your right to request reconsideration. The timeline to appeal began when you received this order. Please send it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Licensing Division Attention: Legal Unit PO Box 64242 St. Paul, MN 55164-0242 If your request is being personally delivered, it must be received by DHS within 10 calendar days from when you received this order. Please bring it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Licensing Division Attention: Legal Unit 444 Lafayette Road North St. Paul, MN 55155 Billing and Payment of the Fine DHS will send you an invoice for the $200 fine. Payment must be made as directed on the invoice. If you request a contested case hearing, as described above, do not pay the fine at this time. Following the contested case hearing, the Commissioner of DHS will issue a final order on this matter. Please note, you may not avoid payment of this fine by closing, selling, or otherwise transferring the license to a third party. If this occurs, you are personally responsible for payment. If you do not pay the fine on or before the date specified on the invoice and you did not request a contested case hearing, as described above, the Commissioner may issue a second fine, may not issue or reissue a license, or may suspend the license until the license holder pays the fine. Conditional license stayed pending reconsideration If you request reconsideration within the timeframes described above, the terms of the conditional license will not take effect until a decision is issued by DHS. If the conditional license is affirmed on reconsideration, the terms would take effect on the date of the reconsideration decision and run for 2 years from that date. You continue to be required to comply with all family child care laws and rules. Legal representation at the contested case hearing You do not need a lawyer to appeal. However, a lawyer can help you with your appeal. The state or county will not get you a lawyer and will not pay for a lawyer. If you cannot afford a lawyer, you may be able to get free legal advice or help with your appeal. To find out if free help is available, contact: Volunteer Lawyers Network at 612-752-6677; Central Minnesota Legal Services at 612-332-8151; Southern Minnesota Legal Services at 651-222-4731; or go to www.lawhelpmn.org to find a local legal services program that may be able to help you. You can also find information on contested cases from the Office of Administrative Hearings website at https://mn.gov/oah/self-help. Click on Administrative Law Overview, then click on Administrative Law Contested Case Hearing Guide for a list of frequently asked questions. Posting of this licensing action You are required to place this Order of Conditional License and Order to Pay a Fine in a place that is clearly noticeable to the people receiving services and all visitors to the facility for two years, even if you appeal. Prohibition against providing legally unlicensed child care On December 22, 2008, DHS issued an Order of Temporary Immediate Suspension to your family child care program in Todd County, which disqualified you from providing legally unlicensed child care. You remain prohibited from providing legally unlicensed child care even if you appeal this order. Legal authority for this licensing action · This action is taken under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.07, subdivision 1, paragraph (a), which describes under which conditions DHS may impose a fine against a license. · DHS may impose a $200 fine for each health, safety, or supervision licensing violation under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.07, subdivision 3, paragraph (c)(4)(iv). · Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.07, subdivision 3, paragraph (c)(5) states that license holders may not avoid payment of a fine by closing, selling, or transferring a license. · Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.04, subdivision 7, paragraph (d)(4), states that DHS shall not issue or reissue a license if the applicant, license holder, or controlling individual has an outstanding debt related to a license fee, licensing fine, or settlement agreement for which payment is delinquent. · Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.07, subdivision 3, paragraph (c)(2), states that that the license holder shall pay the fine assessed on or before the payment date specified, and if the license holder does not do so the commissioner may issue a second fine or suspend the license until the license holder complies. · The timeline to request reconsideration of the order of conditional license is provided in Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 4. · License holders have a right to appeal licensing actions and request a contested case hearing, under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 14 and Minnesota Rules, parts 1400.8505 to 1400.8612. · If a license holder files a timely reconsideration request, the terms of the conditional license are stayed pending a decision by DHS under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 4. · Under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 4, if DHS issues a dual order to pay a fine and a conditional license and the license holder appeals both the fine and the conditional license, DHS will not do a separate reconsideration of the conditional license. If the license holder does not appeal the fine but requests reconsideration of the conditional license, then the license holder does not have a right to a hearing and DHS will conduct a reconsideration of the conditional license. · Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.03, subdivision 2a provides that an applicant for licensure who has received a fine order or an order of conditional license that has not been reversed on appeal may not operate as a legally unlicensed child care provider. · Operating an unlicensed family child care is a misdemeanor under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.03, subdivision 3. · The requirement to post this order in a clearly visible location is required under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 8. OR The requirement to post this order in a clearly visible location is required under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.07, subdivision 5. Questions If you have any further questions regarding this matter, you may contact Beth Donahue, Supervisor, at 651-431-6565. Sincerely,
Barbara Wagner, Unit Manager Licensing Division Office of Inspector General cc: Leeza Branstrom, Hubbard County Social Service Center
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