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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 6686
January Session, 2023
AN ACT IMPLEMENTING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE OFFICE
OF EARLY CHILDHOOD.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of section 10-16p of the 1
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 2
thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 3
(2) "Eligible children" means children [three and] from birth to four 4
years of age, inclusive, and children five years of age who are not 5
eligible to enroll in school pursuant to section 10-15c, or who are 6
eligible to enroll in school and will attend a school readiness program 7
pursuant to section 10-16t, as amended by this act; 8
Sec. 2. Subsections (c) to (l), inclusive, of section 10-16p of the 9
general statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 10
thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 11
(c) The commissioner shall establish a grant program to provide 12
spaces in accredited school readiness programs located in priority 13
school districts, as described in section 10-266p, or in former priority 14
school districts for eligible children. The state, acting by and in the 15
discretion of the Commissioner of Early Childhood, in consultation 16
with a town or regional school readiness council, may enter into a 17
contract with a municipality, local or regional board of education, 18 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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regional educational service center, family resource center, provider of 19
a child care center, group child care home or family child care home, as 20
described in section 19a-77, Head Start program, preschool program or 21
other program that meets such standards established by the 22
commissioner, to provide, within available appropriations, state 23
financial assistance. Eligibility shall be determined for a five-year 24
period based on an applicant's designation as a priority school district 25
for the initial year of application, except that if a school district that 26
receives a grant pursuant to this subsection is no longer designated as 27
a priority school district at the end of such five-year period, such 28
former priority school district shall continue to be eligible to receive a 29
grant pursuant to this subsection. Grant awards shall be made 30
[annually] for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, and biennially 31
thereafter, contingent upon available funding and a satisfactory annual 32
evaluation. The chief elected official of such town and the 33
superintendent of schools for such priority school district or former 34
priority school district shall submit a plan for the expenditure of grant 35
funds and responses to the local request for proposal process to the 36
commissioner. The commissioner shall review and approve such 37
plans. The plan shall: (1) Be developed in consultation with the local or 38
regional school readiness council established pursuant to section 10-39
16r; (2) be based on a needs and resource assessment; (3) provide for 40
the issuance of requests for proposals for providers of accredited 41
school readiness programs, provided, after the initial requests for 42
proposals, facilities that have been approved to operate a child care 43
program financed through the Connecticut Health and Education 44
Facilities Authority and have received a commitment for debt service 45
from the Department of Social Services, pursuant to section 17b-749i, 46
on or before June 30, 2014, and on or after July 1, 2014, from the office, 47
are exempt from the requirement for issuance of annual requests for 48
proposals; and (4) identify the need for funding pursuant to section 49
17b-749a in order to extend the hours and days of operation of school 50
readiness programs in order to provide child care services for children 51
attending such programs. 52 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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(d) (1) The commissioner shall establish a competitive grant 53
program to provide spaces in accredited school readiness programs or 54
school readiness programs seeking accreditation located in (A) an area 55
served by a priority school or a former priority school, (B) a town 56
ranked one to fifty when all towns are ranked in ascending order 57
according to town wealth, as defined in subdivision (26) of section 10-58
262f, whose school district is not a priority school district pursuant to 59
section 10-266p, (C) a town formerly a town described in subparagraph 60
(B) of this subdivision, as provided for in subdivision (2) of this 61
subsection, or (D) a town designated as an alliance district, as defined 62
in section 10-262u, whose school district is not a priority school district 63
pursuant to section 10-266p. A town in which a priority school is 64
located, a regional school readiness council, pursuant to subsection (c) 65
of section 10-16r, for a region in which such a school is located or a 66
town described in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision may apply for 67
such a grant in an amount equal to the number of spaces in an 68
accredited school readiness program or a school readiness program 69
seeking accreditation multiplied by the per child cost set forth in 70
subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of section 10-16q. Eligibility shall be 71
determined for a three-year period based on an applicant's designation 72
as having a priority school or being a town described in subparagraph 73
(B) of this subdivision for the initial year of application. The state, 74
acting by and in the discretion of the Commissioner of Early 75
Childhood, in consultation with a town or regional school readiness 76
council, may enter into a contract with a municipality, local or regional 77
board of education, regional educational service center, family 78
resource center, provider of a child care center, group child care home 79
or family child care home, as described in section 19a-77, Head Start 80
program, preschool program or other program that meets such 81
standards established by the commissioner, to provide, within 82
available appropriations, state financial assistance. The chief elected 83
official of such town and the superintendent of schools of the school 84
district or the regional school readiness council shall submit a plan, as 85
described in subsection (c) of this section, for the expenditure of such 86
grant funds to the commissioner. In awarding grants pursuant to this 87 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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subsection, the commissioner shall give preference to applications 88
submitted by regional school readiness councils and may, within 89
available appropriations, provide a grant to such town or regional 90
school readiness council that increases the number of spaces for 91
eligible children who reside in an area or town described in 92
subparagraphs (A) to (D), inclusive, of this subdivision, in an 93
accredited school readiness program or a school readiness program 94
seeking accreditation. 95
(2) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (C) of this subdivision, 96
commencing with the fiscal year ending June 30, 2005, if a town 97
received a grant pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection and is 98
no longer eligible to receive such a grant, the town may receive a 99
phase-out grant for each of the three fiscal years following the fiscal 100
year such town received its final grant pursuant to subdivision (1) of 101
this subsection. 102
(B) The amount of such phase-out grants shall be determined as 103
follows: (i) For the first fiscal year following the fiscal year such town 104
received its final grant pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, in 105
an amount that does not exceed seventy-five per cent of the grant 106
amount such town received for the town or school's final year of 107
eligibility pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection; (ii) for the 108
second fiscal year following the fiscal year such town received its final 109
grant pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, in an amount that 110
does not exceed fifty per cent of the grant amount such town received 111
for the town's or school's final year of eligibility pursuant to 112
subdivision (1) of this subsection; and (iii) for the third fiscal year 113
following the fiscal year such town received its final grant pursuant to 114
subdivision (1) of this subsection, in an amount that does not exceed 115
twenty-five per cent of the grant amount such town received for the 116
town's or school's final year of eligibility pursuant to subdivision (1) of 117
this subsection. 118
(C) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2011, and each fiscal year 119
thereafter, any town that received a grant pursuant to subparagraph 120 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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(B) of subdivision (1) of this subsection for the fiscal year ending June 121
30, 2010, shall continue to receive a grant under this subsection even if 122
the town no longer meets the criteria for such grant pursuant to 123
subparagraph (B) of subdivision (1) of this subsection. 124
(e) (1) If funds appropriated for the purposes of subsection (c) of this 125
section are not expended, the commissioner may deposit such 126
unexpended funds in the account established under section 10-16aa 127
and use such unexpended funds in accordance with the provisions of 128
section 10-16aa. 129
(2) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, and each fiscal year 130
thereafter, if funds appropriated for the purposes of subsection (c) of 131
this section are not expended, an amount up to one million dollars of 132
such unexpended funds may be available for the provision of 133
professional development for early childhood care and education 134
program providers, and staff employed in such programs, provided 135
such programs accept state funds for infant, toddler and preschool 136
slots. Such unexpended funds may be available for use in accordance 137
with the provisions of this subparagraph for the subsequent fiscal year. 138
The commissioner may use such unexpended funds on and after July 139
1, 2015, to support early childhood education programs accepting state 140
funds in satisfying the staff qualifications requirements of 141
subparagraphs (B) and (C) of subdivision (2) of subsection (b) of this 142
section. The commissioner shall use any such funds to provide 143
assistance to individual staff members, giving priority to those staff 144
members (A) attending an institution of higher education accredited 145
by the Board of Regents for Higher Education or the Office of Higher 146
Education, and approved by the Office of Early Childhood, and 147
regionally accredited, at a maximum of ten thousand dollars per staff 148
member per year for the cost of higher education courses leading to a 149
bachelor's degree or, not later than December 31, 2015, an associate 150
degree, as such degrees are described in said subparagraphs (B) and 151
(C), or (B) receiving noncredit competency-based training approved by 152
the office, at a maximum of one thousand dollars per staff member per 153 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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year, provided such staff members have applied for all available 154
federal and state scholarships and grants, and such assistance does not 155
exceed such staff members' financial need. Individual staff members 156
shall apply for such unexpended funds in a manner determined by the 157
commissioner. The commissioner shall determine how such 158
unexpended funds shall be distributed. 159
(3) If funds appropriated for the purposes of subsection (c) of this 160
section are not expended pursuant to subsection (c) of this section, 161
deposited pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, or used 162
pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection, the commissioner may 163
use such unexpended funds to support local school readiness 164
programs. The commissioner may use such funds for purposes 165
including, but not limited to, (A) assisting local school readiness 166
programs in meeting and maintaining accreditation requirements, (B) 167
providing training in implementing the preschool assessment and 168
curriculum frameworks, including training to enhance literacy 169
teaching skills, (C) developing a state-wide preschool curriculum, (D) 170
developing student assessments for students in grades kindergarten to 171
two, inclusive, (E) developing and implementing best practices for 172
parents in supporting preschool and kindergarten student learning, (F) 173
developing and implementing strategies for children to successfully 174
transition to preschool and from preschool to kindergarten, including 175
through parental engagement and whole-family supports that may be 176
utilized through the two-generational initiative, established pursuant 177
to section 17b-112l, or through other available resources, (G) providing 178
for professional development, including assisting in career ladder 179
advancement, for school readiness staff, (H) providing supplemental 180
grants to other towns that are eligible for grants pursuant to subsection 181
(c) of this section, and (I) developing a plan to provide spaces in an 182
accredited school readiness program or a school readiness program 183
seeking accreditation to all eligible children who reside in an area or 184
town described in subparagraphs (A) to (D), inclusive, of subdivision 185
(1) of subsection (d) of this section. 186 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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(f) Any school readiness program that receives funds pursuant to 187
this section or section 10-16u shall not discriminate on the basis of race, 188
color, national origin, gender, religion or disability. For purposes of 189
this section, a nonsectarian program means any public or private 190
school readiness program that is not violative of the Establishment 191
Clause of the Constitution of the State of Connecticut or the 192
Establishment Clause of the Constitution of the United States of 193
America. 194
(g) Subject to the provisions of this subsection, no funds received by 195
a town pursuant to subsection (c) or (d) of this section or section 10-196
16u shall be used to supplant federal, state or local funding received by 197
such town for early childhood education, provided a town may use an 198
amount determined in accordance with this subsection for 199
coordination, program evaluation and administration. Such amount 200
shall be at least five per cent of the total grant allocation, but not more 201
than seventy-five thousand dollars and shall be determined by the 202
commissioner based on the school readiness grant award allocated to 203
the town pursuant to subsection (c) or (d) of this section or section 10-204
16u and the number of operating sites for coordination, program 205
evaluation and administration. Such amount shall be increased by an 206
amount equal to local funding provided for early childhood education 207
coordination, program evaluation and administration, not to exceed 208
twenty-five thousand dollars. Each town that receives a grant pursuant 209
to subsection (c) or (d) of this section or section 10-16u shall designate 210
a person to be responsible for such coordination, program evaluation 211
and administration and to act as a liaison between the town and the 212
commissioner. Each school readiness program that receives funds 213
pursuant to this section or section 10-16u shall provide information to 214
the commissioner or the school readiness council, as requested, that is 215
necessary for purposes of any school readiness program evaluation. 216
(h) Any town receiving a grant pursuant to this section may use 217
such grant, with the approval of the commissioner, to prepare a facility 218
or staff for operating a school readiness program and shall be adjusted 219 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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based on the number of days of operation of a school readiness 220
program if a shorter term of operation is approved by the 221
commissioner. 222
(i) A town may use grant funds to purchase spaces for eligible 223
children who reside in such town at an accredited school readiness 224
program located in another town. A regional school readiness council 225
may use grant funds to purchase spaces for eligible children who 226
reside in the region covered by the council at an accredited school 227
readiness program located outside such region. 228
(j) Children enrolled in school readiness programs funded pursuant 229
to this section shall not be counted (1) as resident students for 230
purposes of subdivision (22) of section 10-262f, or (2) in the 231
determination of average daily membership pursuant to subdivision 232
(2) of subsection (a) of section 10-261. 233
(k) (1) Up to two per cent of the amount of the appropriation for this 234
section may be allocated to the competitive grant program pursuant to 235
subsection (d) of this section. The determination of the amount of such 236
allocation shall be made on or before August first. 237
(2) Up to two per cent of the amount of the appropriation for this 238
section may be used by the commissioner in a manner consistent with 239
the provisions of section 10-509. 240
[(l) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, and each fiscal year 241
thereafter, any school readiness program that (1) is licensed by the 242
Office of Early Childhood pursuant to chapter 368a, (2) provides full-243
day and year-round child care and education programs for children, 244
and (3) receives funds pursuant to this section or section 10-16u, shall 245
use any amount of the per child cost as described in subdivision (1) of 246
subsection (b) of section 10-16q that is over the amount of eight 247
thousand nine hundred twenty-seven dollars, exclusively to increase 248
the salaries of those individuals with direct responsibility for teaching 249
or caring for children in a classroom at such school readiness 250 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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program.] 251
Sec. 3. Section 10-16t of the general statutes is repealed and the 252
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 253
A local school readiness council may elect to reserve up to five per 254
cent of the spaces in its school readiness programs for children who are 255
five years of age and are eligible to attend school pursuant to section 256
10-15c. Such children shall only be eligible to participate in the school 257
readiness program if (1) they have been in the program for at least one 258
year, [and] (2) the parent or legal guardian of such a child, the school 259
readiness program provider and the local or regional school district in 260
which the child would otherwise be attending school agree that the 261
child [is not ready for kindergarten] would benefit from another year 262
in the program and to defer attendance in kindergarten until the 263
following year, and (3) a written authorization, signed by the parent or 264
guardian of such a child, indicating that such child will not attend 265
kindergarten until the following year is filed with the local or regional 266
school district in which such child would otherwise be attending 267
school. 268
Sec. 4. Subdivision (3) of subsection (a) of section 10-505 of the 269
general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu 270
thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 271
(3) "Eligible children" means children (A) [three and] from birth to 272
four years of age, inclusive, and children five years of age who are not 273
eligible to enroll in school pursuant to section 10-15c, or who are 274
eligible to enroll in school and will attend a school readiness program 275
pursuant to section 10-16t, as amended by this act, and (B) who reside 276
(i) in an area served by a priority school or a former priority school, as 277
described in subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of section 10-16p, as 278
amended by this act, (ii) in a town ranked one to fifty when all towns 279
are ranked in ascending order according to town wealth, as defined in 280
subdivision (26) of section 10-262f, whose school district is not a 281
priority school district pursuant to section 10-266p, (iii) in a town 282 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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formerly a town described in clause (ii) of this subparagraph, as 283
provided for in subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of section 10-16p, as 284
amended by this act, or (iv) in a town designated as an alliance district, 285
as defined in section 10-262u, whose school district is not a priority 286
school district pursuant to section 10-266p; 287
Sec. 5. Subsection (b) of section 8-210 of the general statutes is 288
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 289
1, 2023): 290
(b) The state, acting by and in the discretion of the Commissioner of 291
Early Childhood, may enter into a contract with a municipality, a 292
group child care home or family child care home, as described in 293
section 19a-77, a human resource development agency or a nonprofit 294
corporation for state financial assistance in developing and operating 295
child care centers, group child care homes and family child care homes 296
for children disadvantaged by reasons of economic, social or 297
environmental conditions, provided no such financial assistance shall 298
be available for the operating costs of any such child care center, group 299
child care home or family child care home unless it has been licensed 300
by the Commissioner of Early Childhood pursuant to section 19a-80. 301
Such financial assistance shall be available for a program of a 302
municipality, of a group child care home or family child care home, of 303
a human resource development agency or of a nonprofit corporation 304
which may provide for personnel, equipment, supplies, activities, 305
program materials and renovation and remodeling of the physical 306
facilities of such child care centers, group child care homes or family 307
child care homes. Such contract shall provide for state financial 308
assistance, within available appropriations, in the form of a state grant-309
in-aid (1) for a portion of the cost of such program, as determined by 310
the Commissioner of Early Childhood, if not federally assisted, (2) 311
equal to one-half of the amount by which the net cost of such program, 312
as approved by the Commissioner of Early Childhood, exceeds the 313
federal grant-in-aid thereof, or (3) in an amount not less than (A) the 314
per child cost as described in subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of 315 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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section 10-16q, for each child in such program that is three or four 316
years of age and each child that is five years of age who is not eligible 317
to enroll in school, pursuant to section 10-15c, while maintaining 318
services to children under three years of age under this section, and (B) 319
thirteen thousand five hundred dollars for each child three years of age 320
or under who is in infant or toddler care and not in a preschool 321
program. Any such contract entered into on or after July 1, 2022, shall 322
include a provision that at least sixty per cent of the children enrolled 323
in such child care center, group child care home or family child care 324
home are members of families [that] who are at or below seventy-five 325
per cent of the state median income. [For the fiscal year ending June 30, 326
2024, and each fiscal year thereafter, the amount per child pursuant to 327
subdivision (3) of this subsection that is over the amount of the per 328
child cost that was prescribed pursuant to the contract under said 329
subdivision (3) for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, shall be used 330
exclusively to increase the salaries of early childhood educators 331
employed at the child care center.] The Commissioner of Early 332
Childhood may authorize child care centers, group child care homes 333
and family child care homes receiving financial assistance under this 334
subsection to apply a program surplus to the next program year. The 335
Commissioner of Early Childhood shall consult with directors of child 336
care centers in establishing fees for the operation of such centers. For 337
the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023, the Commissioner of Early 338
Childhood shall, within available appropriations, enter into contracts 339
under this section for the purpose of expanding the number of spaces 340
available to children three years of age or under who are in infant or 341
toddler care and not in a preschool program. 342
Sec. 6. Subsections (a) and (b) of section 10-506 of the general 343
statutes are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof 344
(Effective July 1, 2023): 345
(a) For the fiscal [years] year ending June 30, 2015, [to June 30, 2024, 346
inclusive] and each fiscal year thereafter, the Office of Early 347
Childhood, in consultation with the Department of Education, shall 348 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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design and administer the Connecticut Smart Start competitive grant 349
program to provide grants to local and regional boards of education 350
for capital and operating expenses related to establishing or expanding 351
a preschool program under the jurisdiction of the board of education 352
for the town. A local or regional board of education may submit an 353
application to the office, in accordance with the provisions of 354
subsection (b) of this section, and may receive (1) a grant for capital 355
expenses in an amount not to exceed seventy-five thousand dollars per 356
classroom for costs related to the renovation of an existing public 357
school to accommodate the establishment or expansion of a preschool 358
program, and (2) an annual grant for operating expenses (A) in an 359
amount not to exceed five thousand dollars per child served by such 360
grant, or (B) in an amount not to exceed seventy-five thousand dollars 361
for each preschool classroom, provided no town shall receive a total 362
annual grant for operating expenses greater than three hundred 363
thousand dollars. Each local or regional board of education that 364
establishes or expands a preschool program under this section shall be 365
eligible to receive an annual grant for operating expenses for a period 366
of five years, provided such preschool program meets standards 367
established by the Commissioner of Early Childhood. Such local or 368
regional board of education may submit an application for renewal of 369
such grant to the office. 370
(b) On and after July 1, 2014, local and regional boards of education, 371
individually or cooperatively, pursuant to section 10-158a, may apply, 372
at such time and in such manner as the commissioner prescribes, to the 373
office for a capital grant and an operating grant for the purposes 374
described in subsection (a) of this section. To be eligible to receive such 375
grants under this section, an applicant board of education shall (1) 376
demonstrate that it has a need for establishing or expanding a 377
preschool program using information requested by the commissioner 378
on a form prescribed by the commissioner, such as data collected from 379
the preschool experience survey, described in section 10-515, (2) 380
submit a plan for the expenditure of grant funds received under this 381
section that outlines how such board of education will use such funds 382 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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to establish or expand a preschool program, including, but not limited 383
to, the amount that such board will contribute to the operation of such 384
preschool program and how such board of education will provide 385
access to preschool for children who would not otherwise be able to 386
enroll in a preschool program, and (3) submit a letter of support for 387
establishing or expanding a preschool program by the local or regional 388
school readiness council, described in section 10-16r, if any, for the 389
school district. The commissioner shall give priority to boards of 390
education (A) that demonstrate the greatest need for the establishment 391
or expansion of a preschool program, and (B) whose plan allocates at 392
least sixty per cent of the spaces in such preschool program to children 393
who are members of families [that] who are at or below seventy-five 394
per cent of the state median income. [, or fifty per cent of the spaces in 395
such preschool program to children who are eligible for free and 396
reduced price lunches.] The commissioner, in reviewing applications 397
submitted under this subsection, shall also take into consideration (i) 398
whether an applicant board of education (I) currently offers a full-day 399
kindergarten program, (II) will be cooperating and coordinating with 400
other governmental and community programs to provide services 401
during periods when the preschool program is not in session, or (III) 402
will collaborate with other boards of education, as part of a 403
cooperative arrangement pursuant to section 10-158a, to offer a 404
regional preschool program, and (ii) current community capacity for 405
preschool programs and current opportunities for preschool for 406
children in the community. 407
Sec. 7. Subsection (b) of section 10-500 of the general statutes is 408
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 409
1, 2023): 410
(b) The office shall be responsible for: 411
(1) Delivering services to young children and their families to 412
ensure optimal health, safety and learning for each young child, 413
including, but not limited to, coordinating agency efforts and data 414
sharing in the two-generational initiative established pursuant to 415 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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section 17b-112l; 416
(2) Developing and implementing the early childhood information 417
system, in accordance with the provisions of section 10-501; 418
(3) Developing and reporting on the early childhood accountability 419
plan, in accordance with the provisions of section 10-503; 420
(4) Implementing a communications strategy for outreach to 421
families, service providers and policymakers; 422
(5) Beginning a state-wide longitudinal evaluation of the school 423
readiness program examining the educational progress of children 424
from prekindergarten programs to grade four, inclusive; 425
(6) Developing, coordinating and supporting public and private 426
partnerships to aid early childhood initiatives; 427
(7) Developing a state-wide developmentally appropriate 428
kindergarten entrance inventory that measures a child's level of 429
preparedness for kindergarten, but shall not be used as a measurement 430
tool for program accountability; 431
(8) Creating a unified set of reporting requirements for the purpose 432
of collecting the data elements necessary to perform quality 433
assessments and longitudinal analysis; 434
(9) Comparing and analyzing data collected pursuant to reporting 435
requirements created under subdivision (8) of this subsection with the 436
data collected in the state-wide public school information system, 437
pursuant to section 10-10a, for population-level analysis of children 438
and families; 439
(10) Continually monitoring and evaluating all early care and 440
education and child development programs and services, focusing on 441
program outcomes in satisfying the health, safety, developmental and 442
educational needs of all children; 443 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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(11) Coordinating home visitation services across programs for 444
young children; 445
(12) Providing information and technical assistance to persons 446
seeking early care and education and child development programs and 447
services; 448
(13) Assisting state agencies and municipalities in obtaining 449
available federal funding for early care and education and child 450
development programs and services; 451
(14) Providing technical assistance to providers of early care and 452
education programs and services to obtain licensing and improve 453
program quality; 454
(15) Establishing a quality rating and improvement system 455
developed by the office that covers home-based, center-based and 456
school-based early child care and learning; 457
(16) Maintaining an accreditation facilitation initiative to assist early 458
childhood care and education program and service providers in 459
achieving national standards and program improvement; 460
(17) Consulting with the Early Childhood Cabinet, established 461
pursuant to section 10-16z, and the Head Start advisory committee, 462
established pursuant to section 10-16n; 463
(18) Ensuring a coordinated and comprehensive state-wide system 464
of professional development for providers and staff of early care and 465
education and child development programs and services; 466
(19) Providing families with opportunities for choice in services 467
including quality child care and community-based family-centered 468
services; 469
(20) Integrating early childhood care and education and special 470
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(21) Promoting universal access to early childhood care and 472
education; 473
(22) Ensuring nonduplication of monitoring and evaluation; 474
(23) Performing any other activities that will assist in the provision 475
of early care and education and child development programs and 476
services; 477
(24) Developing early learning and development standards to be 478
used by early care and education providers; 479
(25) Developing and implementing a performance-based evaluation 480
system to evaluate licensed child care centers, in accordance with the 481
provisions of section 17b-749f; [and] 482
(26) Promoting the delivery of services to infants and toddlers to 483
ensure optimal health, safety and learning of children from birth to 484
three years of age; and 485
(27) Establishing a parent cabinet to advise the office on ways to 486
strengthen partnership and communication with families, bring 487
awareness to gaps and barriers to services, increase access to services 488
for families and help make improvements to the lives of young 489
children and families in the state. 490
Sec. 8. Section 10-502 of the general statutes is repealed and the 491
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 492
The Office of Early Childhood shall collaborate with and may, 493
within available appropriations, provide funding to local [and 494
regional] early childhood [councils] collaboratives for the 495
implementation of early care and education and child development 496
programs at the local level. Such local early childhood [councils] 497
collaboratives shall: (1) Develop and implement a comprehensive plan 498
for an early childhood system for the community served by such local 499
early childhood [council] collaborative, (2) develop policy and 500 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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program planning, (3) encourage community participation by 501
emphasizing substantial parental involvement, (4) collect, analyze and 502
evaluate data with a focus on program and service outcomes, (5) 503
allocate resources, and (6) perform any other functions that will assist 504
in the provision of early childhood programs and services. Such local 505
early childhood [councils] collaboratives may enter into memoranda of 506
agreement with the local or regional school readiness council, 507
described in section 10-16r, of the town or region served by such local 508
early childhood [council] collaborative to perform the duties and 509
functions of a school readiness council, in accordance with the 510
provisions of section 10-16r, or if no such local or regional school 511
readiness council exists for the town or region of such local early 512
childhood [council] collaborative, perform the duties and functions of 513
a school readiness council, in accordance with the provisions of section 514
10-16r. 515
Sec. 9. Subsection (d) of section 19a-87a of the general statutes are 516
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 517
1, 2023): 518
(d) Any person having reasonable cause to believe that a child care 519
center or a group child care home is operating without a current and 520
valid license or in violation of regulations adopted under section 19a-521
79 or in a manner which may pose a potential danger to the health, 522
welfare and safety of a child receiving child care services, may report 523
such information to the Office of Early Childhood. The office shall 524
investigate any report or complaint received pursuant to this 525
subsection. The name of the person making the report or complaint 526
shall not be disclosed unless (1) such person consents to such 527
disclosure, (2) a judicial or administrative proceeding results 528
therefrom, [or] (3) a license action pursuant to subsection (a) of this 529
section results therefrom, or (4) a state or federal law enforcement 530
officer, including, but not limited to, a military law enforcement 531
authority under the United States Department of Defense, requests 532
such information. All records obtained by the office in connection with 533 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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any such investigation shall not be subject to the provisions of section 534
1-210 for a period of thirty days from the date of the petition or other 535
event initiating such investigation, or until such time as the 536
investigation is terminated pursuant to a withdrawal or other informal 537
disposition or until a hearing is convened pursuant to chapter 54, 538
whichever is earlier, except such records, whether obtained or 539
generated by the office, shall be disclosed, without redaction, to a state 540
or federal law enforcement officer, including, but not limited to, a 541
military law enforcement authority under the United States 542
Department of Defense upon written request. A formal statement of 543
charges issued by the office shall be subject to the provisions of section 544
1-210 from the time that it is served or mailed to the respondent. 545
Records which are otherwise public records shall not be deemed 546
confidential merely because they have been obtained in connection 547
with an investigation under this section. 548
Sec. 10. Subsection (e) of section 19a-87e of the general statutes is 549
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 550
1, 2023): 551
(e) Any person having reasonable cause to believe that a family 552
child care home, as defined in section 19a-77, is operating without a 553
current and valid license or in violation of the regulations adopted 554
under section 19a-87b or in a manner which may pose a potential 555
danger to the health, welfare and safety of a child receiving child care 556
services, may report such information to the Office of Early Childhood. 557
The office shall investigate any report or complaint received pursuant 558
to this subsection. The name of the person making the report or 559
complaint shall not be disclosed unless (1) such person consents to 560
such disclosure, (2) a judicial or administrative proceeding results from 561
such report or complaint, [or] (3) a license action pursuant to 562
subsection (a) of this section results from such report or complaint, or 563
(4) a state or federal law enforcement officer, including, but not limited 564
to, a military law enforcement authority under the United States 565
Department of Defense, requests such information. All records 566 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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obtained by the office in connection with any such investigation shall 567
not be subject to the provisions of section 1-210 for a period of thirty 568
days from the date of the petition or other event initiating such 569
investigation, or until such time as the investigation is terminated 570
pursuant to a withdrawal or other informal disposition or until a 571
hearing is convened pursuant to chapter 54, whichever is earlier, 572
except such records, whether obtained or generated by the office, shall 573
be disclosed, without redaction, to a state or federal law enforcement 574
officer, including, but not limited to, a military law enforcement 575
authority under the United States Department of Defense, upon 576
written request. A formal statement of charges issued by the office 577
shall be subject to the provisions of section 1-210 from the time that it is 578
served or mailed to the respondent. Records which are otherwise 579
public records shall not be deemed confidential merely because they 580
have been obtained in connection with an investigation under this 581
section. 582
Sec. 11. Section 19a-429 of the general statutes is repealed and the 583
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2023): 584
Any person having reasonable cause to believe that a youth camp, 585
as defined in section 19a-420, is operating without a current and valid 586
license or in violation of regulations adopted under section 19a-428 or 587
in a manner which may pose a potential danger to the health, welfare 588
and safety of a child receiving youth camp services, may report such 589
information to the office. The office shall investigate any report or 590
complaint received pursuant to this section. In connection with any 591
investigation of a youth camp, the commissioner or the commissioner's 592
authorized agent may administer oaths, issue subpoenas, compel 593
testimony and order the production of books, records and documents. 594
If any person refuses to appear, to testify or to produce any book, 595
record or document when so ordered, a judge of the Superior Court 596
may make such order as may be appropriate to aid in the enforcement 597
of this section. The name of the person making the report or complaint 598
shall not be disclosed unless (1) such person consents to such 599 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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disclosure, (2) a judicial or administrative proceeding results 600
therefrom, [or] (3) a license action pursuant to section 19a-423 results 601
from such report or complaint, or (4) a state or federal law enforcement 602
officer, including, but not limited to, a military law enforcement 603
authority under the United States Department of Defense, requests 604
such information. All records obtained by the office in connection with 605
any such investigation shall not be subject to the provisions of section 606
1-210 for a period of thirty days from the date of the petition or other 607
event initiating such investigation, or until such time as the 608
investigation is terminated pursuant to a withdrawal or other informal 609
disposition or until a hearing is convened pursuant to chapter 54, 610
whichever is earlier, except such records, whether obtained or 611
generated by the office, shall be disclosed, without redaction, to a state 612
or federal law enforcement officer, including, but not limited to, a 613
military law enforcement authority under the United State s 614
Department of Defense, upon written request. A formal statement of 615
charges issued by the office shall be subject to the provisions of section 616
1-210 from the time that it is served or mailed to the respondent. 617
Records which are otherwise public records shall not be deemed 618
confidential merely because they have been obtained in connection 619
with an investigation under this section. 620
Sec. 12. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2023) (a) The Office of Early 621
Childhood, in consultation with the Department of Public Health, shall 622
develop best practices for ordering a medical examination by a 623
physician, physician assistant or advanced practice registered nurse 624
during any investigation (1) concerning an application, reinstatement 625
or renewal of a license for a child care center, group child care home or 626
family child care home, as such terms are defined in section 19a-77 of 627
the general statutes, (2) of a complaint concerning child care services, 628
as described in section 19a-77 of the general statutes, or (3) concerning 629
the possible provision of unlicensed child care services. The best 630
practices shall include, but need not be limited to, specifications for (A) 631
who would be subject to a medical examination ordered by the office, 632
(B) how the nature and scope of a medical examination would be 633 Substitute Bill No. 6686
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determined, (C) how the physician, physician assistant or advanced 634
practice registered nurse would be chosen to conduct a medical 635
examination, and (D) the possible consequences and enforcement 636
mechanisms for any failure to submit to a medical examination. 637
(b) Not later than February 1, 2024, the Office of Early Childhood 638
shall submit, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the 639
general statutes, to the joint standing committee of the General 640
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to education a report 641
concerning the best practices developed pursuant to subsection (a) of 642
this section. Such report may include, but need not be limited to, 643
legislative recommendations to authorize the office to order medical 644
examinations in accordance with the best practices developed 645
pursuant to subsection (a) of this section. 646
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2023 10-16p(a)(2)
Sec. 2 July 1, 2023 10-16p(c) to (l)
Sec. 3 July 1, 2023 10-16t
Sec. 4 July 1, 2023 10-505(a)(3)
Sec. 5 July 1, 2023 8-210(b)
Sec. 6 July 1, 2023 10-506(a) and (b)
Sec. 7 July 1, 2023 10-500(b)
Sec. 8 July 1, 2023 10-502
Sec. 9 July 1, 2023 19a-87a(d)
Sec. 10 July 1, 2023 19a-87e(e)
Sec. 11 July 1, 2023 19a-429
Sec. 12 July 1, 2023 New section
ED Joint Favorable Subst.