Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Child Care topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
House approves background-check requirements for child-care providers
Summary
House Bill 1 46 was replaced with a third substitute requiring background checks for child-care providers who care for more than four children, giving the Utah Department of Health complaint authority and requiring a one-page posted notice of licensing status; the House passed the bill 68-1.
The Utah House on March 6 approved a measure aimed at tightening background screening for child-care providers that care for more than four children.
Representative Menlove, sponsor of House Bill 1 46, said the bill asks child-care providers who care for more than four children to be background-checked through the state system and authorizes the Utah Department of Health to investigate complaints. "We are not seeking by this legislation to license all child care providers," Menlove said, but added the measure is intended to ensure parents can be confident about who is providing care.
The third substitute requires providers to post a one'page notice at their facility indicating whether they are licensed or unlicensed, clarifies that juvenile records will be checked for 12- to 17-year-old residents, and codifies that many unlicensed providers already perform some background screening.
Menlove told the House the substitute resulted from committee work and consensus; the House adopted the third substitute and passed the bill 68-1. The sponsor and committee chairs indicated the change is not intended to be punitive but to target providers caring for larger numbers of children and to protect families and children.
The bill will be sent to the Senate for further consideration.
