Contracts and Policies

Tom Copeland is the nation’s leading expert on the business of family child care. A renowned tax and child care business specialist and licensed attorney, Tom received his BA from Macalester College, and JD from William Mitchell College of Law. He is the author and coauthor of numerous books including Family Child Care Contracts & Policies, Family Child Care Record-Keeping Guide, Managing Legal Risks in Early Childhood Programs, and Family Child Care Marketing Guide. Each year Tom trains thousands of family child care providers, trainers, and tax preparers on important business issues, including record keeping, taxes, marketing, contracts, and legal issues. Currently, he is a consultant for the National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC).  Tom has received numerous awards for his work including; the Friends of NAFCC Award from the National Association for Family Child Care, and the Care Advocate of the Year award from the Minnesota Licensed Family Child Care Association.  He has represented numerous providers in IRS audits and has won three US Tax Court cases. In 2003, the IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2003-22 that allows family child care providers to use a standard meal allowance rate to claim food expenses. Tom was the author of the proposal that led to this rule.