Senate committee weighs folding early-childhood licensure into OPR bill, debates fees and timing

The Senate Government Operations Committee on April 23 considered folding provisions from H.119 into H.472, the Office of Professional Regulation bill, to create a new licensure chapter for early childhood educators and a Board of Early Childhood Educators.

Committee members and legislative counsel described the combined draft as a ‘‘strike-all’’ approach to incorporate H.119’s provisions into H.472. Tim Devlin, legislative counsel, told the committee the two drafting approaches would have the same legal effect and said they could ‘‘redraft it as such as strike all.’’

The combined draft adds early childhood educators to the professions regulated by OPR, creates a new chapter for early childhood educators, and sets out four licensure categories (ECE 1–3 and a family child care provider category). The bill would…