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Committee hears measure letting high school juniors and seniors earn credits working in childcare and care facilities
Summary
Representative Ed Butchery introduced House Bill 381 to allow eleventh- and twelfth-graders to work or volunteer in child care, long-term care and other congregate-care settings and receive high-school credits for supervised hours. Proponents including the Montana Chamber of Commerce, early-childhood groups and hospital associations said the bill
Representative Ed Butchery, R-Great Falls, presented House Bill 381 to let high school juniors and seniors (and potentially 16-year-olds) earn high-school credit by completing supervised work or volunteer hours in childcare settings, long-term care, developmental-disability facilities and similar congregate-care employers.
Why it matters: Proponents said the bill is a workforce-readiness tool that helps struggling sectors — childcare, long-term care, assisted living and developmental services — by giving students early exposure to caregiver careers and extra staffing capacity. Supporters included the Montana Chamber of Commerce, 0 to 5 Montana, the Montana Hospital Association, the Montana Healthcare Association and Disability Rights Montana.
What the bill does: The bill establishes that eligible students may earn up to 2 high-school credits for a specified number of supervised hours (draft language referenced 250 hours per credit in testimony), requires schools to adopt an application and verification process (supervisor name, work description, hours and verification) and leaves crediting and other details in part to local school authorities and existing career-technical education structures.
Operational and oversight details: Witnesses from the Office of Public Instruction and the Board of Public Education said programs of study and work-based learning manuals already provide a framework for school districts to supervise workplace experiences and to document minutes toward credits. The Board of Public Education noted it measures a unit as roughly 8,100 minutes (about 135 hours) per unit under current rules, which can help align hours and credits locally. The Department of Public Health and Human Services explained child-care licensing rules require workers under 18 to be supervised and that, under rules taking effect in 2025, the unsupervised-care age would drop to 16; until then, students under 18 cannot be in unsupervised care of children.
Liability and background checks: Sponsors and witnesses said licensing and school processes cover background checks, CPR training and other prerequisites for students who would work or volunteer at facilities; whether liability and workers’ compensation fall to the facility or school depends on the student’s employment status and existing statutes.
Ending: Proponents asked the committee to pass HB 381; sponsor said he will work with OPI and local districts to refine hours/credit conversions and other details. The hearing closed without a committee vote.
