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53	53	STATE OF OKLAHOMA
54	54
55	55	1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023)
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57	57	SENATE BILL 425 By: Garvin
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63	63	AS INTRODUCED
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65	65	An Act relating to child care; amending 10 O.S. 2021,
66	66	Section 406, which relates to investigations;
67	67	requiring the Department of Human S ervices to provide
68	68	certain information to complainants ; providing
69	69	certain identification procedure for findings of
70	70	report; making person liable for w illful or reckless
71	71	false complaint; requiring the Departme nt to
72	72	establish and utilize certain scope and severity
73	73	grid; updating statutory language; and providing an
74	74	effective date.
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79	79	BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
80	80	SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 10 O.S. 2021, Secti on 406, is
81	81	amended to read as follows:
82	82	Section 406. A. 1. Except as provided in paragraph 2 of this
83	83	subsection, the Depa rtment of Human Services shall have authority at
84	84	any reasonable time to investigate and ex amine the conditions of any
85	85	child care facility in which a licensee or applicant hereunder
86	86	receives and maintains childr en, and shall have authority at any
87	87	time to require the facility to provide information pertaining to
88	88	children in its care.
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140	140	2. When the Department of Human Services is reviewing the star
141	141	rating of a child care program with a capa city of fifty or more, th e
142	142	comprehensive visit to inspect and examine th e program shall be
143	143	scheduled with the administration of the program at least one (1)
144	144	week in advance of the visit, if requested by th e child care
145	145	facility.
146	146	B. 1. The State Department of Health may visit any licensee or
147	147	applicant at the request of the Dep artment to advise on matters
148	148	affecting the health of children and to inspect the sanitatio n of
149	149	the buildings used for their care.
150	150	2. The State Fire Marshal may visit any licensee or a pplicant
151	151	at the request of the Department to advise on matters affecting the
152	152	safety of children and to inspect the condition of the buildings
153	153	used for their care.
154	154	C. 1. Upon receipt of a complaint agains t any child care
155	155	facility alleging a violation of t he provisions of the O klahoma
156	156	Child Care Facilities Licensing Act, or an y licensing standard
157	157	promulgated by the Department, the Department shall conduct a full
158	158	investigation. When a complaint is submitted , the Department shall
159	159	inform the complainant of any potential consequences for willfully
160	160	or recklessly submitting a false complaint including, but not
161	161	limited to, civil liability as describe d in subsection G of this
162	162	section. If upon investigation, it is determined that there are
163	163	reasonable grounds to bel ieve that a facility i s in violation of the
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215	215	Oklahoma Child Care Faciliti es Licensing Act or of any standard or
216	216	rule promulgated pursuant thereto, the Department s hall:
217	217	a. document the complaint,
218	218	b. provide the complaint allegations in writing to the
219	219	facility involved and, upo n written request by the
220	220	child care facility, provid e a summary of the facts
221	221	used to evaluate the completed complaint, and
222	222	c. document the facility’s plan for correcting any
223	223	substantiated violations.
224	224	2. If the Department determines the re has been a violation and
225	225	the violation has a direct impact on the hea lth, safety or well-
226	226	being of one or more of the children cared for by the facility, the
227	227	Department shall notify the facility and requ ire correction of the
228	228	violation.
229	229	3. The Department shall notify the facility that failure to
230	230	correct the confirmed violati on can result in the revocation of the
231	231	license, the denial of an application for a license , the issuance of
232	232	an emergency order or the filing of an injunction pursuant to the
233	233	provisions of Section 409 of this title.
234	234	4. If the facility refuses to correct a violation or fails to
235	235	complete the plan of correction, the Department may issue an
236	236	emergency order, revoke the license, or deny the a pplication for a
237	237	license. Nothing in this section or Section 407 of this title shall
238	238	be construed as preventing the Depart ment from denying an
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290	290	application, revoking a license, or issuing an emergency order for a
291	291	single violation of this act, or the rules of the Department
292	292	promulgated by the Director as provided in Section 404 of this
293	293	title.
294	294	5. If the Department determines th ere has been a substantiated
295	295	finding of heinous and shocking abuse by a person responsible for a
296	296	child’s health, safety or welfare, as those terms are defined in
297	297	Section 1-1-105 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma Statutes, the
298	298	Department shall notify the child c are facility owner or operator
299	299	and the child care resource and referral organization in writing
300	300	immediately or not lat er than one (1) business day after the
301	301	substantiated finding . Upon receiving notice of a substantiated
302	302	finding, the facility owner or ope rator shall attempt to immediately
303	303	notify, but not later than seventy -two (72) hours after receiving
304	304	notice of the substantiated finding, parents or legal guardians of
305	305	children attending the facility by certified mail.
306	306	D. Upon the completion of the invest igation of a complaint
307	307	against any child care facility alleging a violation of the
308	308	provisions of the Oklahoma Child Ca re Facilities Licensing Act or
309	309	any licensing standard promulgated thereto by the Department
310	310	Director, the Department shall clearly designa te its findings on the
311	311	first page of the report of the investigation . The findings shall
312	312	state whether the complaint was subst antiated or unsubstantiated .
313	313	The findings shall identify the employee who is the subject of the
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365	365	complaint, but shall not identify the licensee of the child care
366	366	facility unless the licensee was the su bject of the complaint or
367	367	unless otherwise deem ed appropriate by the Department.
368	368	E. Information obtained by the Department or Oklahoma Child
369	369	Care Services concerning a report of a vio lation of a licensing
370	370	requirement, or from any licensee regarding children or their
371	371	parents or other relatives shall be deem ed confidential and
372	372	privileged communications, shall be prop erly safeguarded, and shall
373	373	not be accessible to anyone except as herein provided, unless upon
374	374	order of a court of competent jurisdiction . Provided, however, this
375	375	provision shall not prohibit the Department from providing a summary
376	376	of allegations and find ings of an investigation involving a child
377	377	care facility that does not d isclose identities but that permits
378	378	parents to evaluate the facility.
379	379	F. The Department Director shall promulgate rules to establish
380	380	and maintain a grievance process that shall includ e an anonymous
381	381	complaint system for reporting and inves tigating complaints or
382	382	grievances about employees of the Department who retaliate against a
383	383	child care facility or facility employee.
384	384	G. Any person who willfully or recklessly makes a false
385	385	complaint without a reasonable basis in fact for such a complaint,
386	386	under the provisions of the Oklahoma Child Care Facilities L icensing
387	387	Act, shall be liable in a civil suit for any actual damages suffered
388	388	by a child care facility or for any punitive damages set by t he
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440	440	court or jury which may be allowed in the discretion of the court or
441	441	jury when deemed proper by the court or jury.
442	442	H. The Department shall establish a scope and severity grid to
443	443	measure the seriousness of violations of the Oklahoma Child Care
444	444	Facilities Licensing Act and shall utilize such scope and severity
445	445	grid in determining penalties for such violations including, but not
446	446	limited to, penalties under Section 407 of this title.
447	447	SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 20 23.
448	448
449	449	59-1-1661 DC 1/16/2023 6:27:19 PM

Oklahoma 2023 Regular Session

Oklahoma Senate Bill SB425 Compare Versions