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Lawmakers propose LC 211 to improve ERDC referrals and reduce background‑check red tape for childcare providers
Summary
Legislators described LC 211 after statewide site visits: the concept would standardize ERDC referral information, strengthen connections to early-learning hubs and CCR&Rs, and charge agencies to review duplicative background checks — aiming to speed family access to existing publicly funded childcare slots and ease workforce mobility.
Representative Jules Walters and Representative Lamar Wise presented findings from cross‑state site visits and introduced Legislative Concept 211, a committee concept aimed at coordinating Oregon’s fragmented early‑learning system.
Walters said legislators visited urban, rural and coastal providers and found fragile but promising programs. ‘‘We saw innovative models that are working ... but we also saw how fragile these models are without aligned policy support,’’ she said.
Representative Wise and Sarah Arbuckle, chief of staff for Rep. Wise, described common barriers families and providers face: parents routed to generalized hotlines and placed on ERDC wait lists without clear information about preschool‑promise or Head Start openings; openings that exist but are underutilized because families are unaware; and duplicative background checks that delay hiring. LC 211 would require standardized referral information at ERDC intake, strengthen links between ERDC, 211 and early‑learning hubs, and direct the Department of Early Learning and Care, ODE and TSPC to review and recommend ways to streamline background checks while maintaining safety.
Arbuckle said the bill focuses on coordination, not expanded eligibility or new program spending, and emphasized that the measures are intended as near‑term, operational fixes. Committee members asked for the list of visited sites and for more detail on background‑check alignment; Arbuckle said a site‑visit report and one‑pagers would be released before session.
Lawmakers also discussed a pilot childcare management system and a micro‑center pilot intended to strengthen provider business capacity; funding requests for a statewide management platform were noted as possible future items.
