The IRC Tag spent a substantial portion of its July 31 meeting on family home child care provisions added to the Washington amendments. Dustin (staff member) summarized the background: state law and Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) licensing had led to some homes being permitted for more than 12 children, creating a need to align building-code provisions for 13–16 children.

Why it matters: changes to family home child care occupancy and sprinkler requirements affect licensing, building-permit reviews, and the safety requirements (sprinklering, egress and other life-safety provisions) that apply when a provider serves more than a household level of children.

Dustin reviewed that the code language in the state amendments allows up to 16 children in a family home child care but add additional requirements for counts above 12. Tag members discussed whether the sprinkler requirement in the amendments applies only to providers serving more than 12 children (the staff interpretation) or to all family home child care. Angela and others clarified that the sprinkler subsection is intended to apply to 13–16 children and should be nested under the subsection that addresses the 13–16 occupancy band; the group agreed the current numbering causes potential misreading, and they asked staff to renumber so the sprinkler rule explicitly sits under the 13–16 subsection. Ken Brulette noted a co‑change petition has been filed for section 3‑11 (carbon monoxide) but also flagged a petition concerning sprinkler requirements; Dustin recorded that petition trails will be addressed in the formal proposal process.

Members also discussed anecdotal reports from providers who believed they had been “grandfathered” with older DCYF allowances for high counts; tag members clarified that the SBCC had not granted any blanket grandfathering and that local jurisdictions and DCYF would need to work through individual cases. The tag asked staff to fix the subsection numbering (so 3‑31.3 would be placed under 3‑31.2) and to show the proposed petition text for the sprinkler requirement in the next meeting packet.

The tag did not change state policy at the session; it directed staff to correct numbering, make the legal citation clarifications, and return with the petition and proposed text for formal action.