Purpose of the Bill

The bill aims to improve transparency and accountability in child care licensing practices. It seeks to ensure that when child care providers are cited for violations, the information on whether these violations were self-reported is clearly documented and accessible.

Main Provisions

• Correction Orders and Conditional Licenses: If a child care license holder violates a rule or law but it doesn't endanger health or safety, a correction order or conditional license can be issued. These documents must now clarify if the violation was self-reported by the provider.

• Posting and Public Access: When conditional licenses or correction orders are posted on the department's website, it must be clearly noted if the license holder self-reported the violation.

• Fix-It Tickets: These are issued instead of correction orders for minor violations. They must clearly state if the violation was self-reported and cannot be published online. License holders have a 48-hour window (excluding weekends and holidays) to correct the issue or a correction order will be issued.

• Technical Assistance: For low-risk non-compliance issues, the commissioner provides guidance instead of a correction order, which must also note if the violation was self-reported. These are not published online.

• Suspensions, Fines, and Revocations: Any suspension, fine, or revocation orders must indicate if the issues were self-reported. If posted online, this information must be included.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• There is a new emphasis on transparency regarding whether violations were self-reported by child care providers. This applies to various forms of compliance documentation, including correction orders, fix-it tickets, and suspensions.
• The documentation and communication about these violations to the public and on official websites now require the inclusion of self-reporting details.

Relevant Terms

• Child care licensing
• Self-reporting
• Correction order
• Conditional license
• Fix-it ticket
• Documented technical assistance
• Suspension
• Revocation
• Transparency in compliance