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Sponsor withdraws Arkansas bill that would exempt licensed family child care homes from local zoning
Summary
State Rep. Randy Torres introduced House Bill 1997 to create a statewide exemption from local zoning for licensed family child care homes, citing a successful Western Benton County pilot funded by a nearly $340,000 grant. After committee questions about local control, parking, HOAs and an emergency clause, Torres withdrew the bill to revise it.
State Rep. Randy Torres, district 17, told the House Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative & Military Affairs Committee that he had filed House Bill 1997 to create a targeted exemption from local zoning restrictions for licensed family child care homes statewide, including inside municipal limits.
Torres said the bill would “preserve local authority to enforce health and safety regulations” while removing zoning barriers that can prevent qualified providers from opening in residential neighborhoods. He told the committee the measure was prompted by a pilot program in Western Benton County funded by an Arkansas Community Foundation grant awarded in October 2024 for almost $340,000.
The pilot, run by the Western Benton County Partnership, created six new in-home child care businesses and about 60 new child care slots last year, Torres said. He said the program now has 10 providers signed up and three more expected to…
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