| 1 | 1 | | By: Alvarado H.B. No. 3322 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to the regulation of and federal funding for certain |
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| 7 | 7 | | child-care providers. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Section 42.0221, Human Resources Code, is |
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| 10 | 10 | | amended by amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsections |
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| 11 | 11 | | (e-1), (e-2), and (e-3) to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (a) The committee on licensing standards is composed of nine |
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| 13 | 13 | | [seven] members appointed by the governor as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (1) one member who operates a residential child-care |
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| 15 | 15 | | facility licensed by the department; |
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| 16 | 16 | | (2) one member who operates a child-placing agency |
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| 17 | 17 | | licensed by the department; |
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| 18 | 18 | | (3) one member who operates a licensed child-care |
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| 19 | 19 | | facility that provides care for children for less than 24 hours a |
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| 20 | 20 | | day; |
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| 21 | 21 | | (4) one member who is a parent, guardian, or custodian |
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| 22 | 22 | | of a child who uses a facility licensed by the department; |
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| 23 | 23 | | (5) one member who is an expert in the field of child |
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| 24 | 24 | | care and child development; [and] |
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| 25 | 25 | | (6) two members employed by the department who work |
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| 26 | 26 | | with facilities licensed by the department; and |
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| 27 | 27 | | (7) two members who represent child advocacy |
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| 28 | 28 | | organizations. |
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| 29 | 29 | | (b) Members of the committee serve two-year terms, with the |
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| 30 | 30 | | terms of [three or] four or five members, as appropriate, expiring |
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| 31 | 31 | | February 1 of each year. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (e-1) The committee shall review and analyze nationwide |
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| 33 | 33 | | best practices of child-care providers and other state standards |
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| 34 | 34 | | related to staff-to-child ratios and group sizes applicable to |
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| 35 | 35 | | nonresidential child-care facilities that provide care for less |
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| 36 | 36 | | than 24 hours a day and make recommendations to the department for |
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| 37 | 37 | | policy and statutory changes related to the ratios and group sizes. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (e-2) From the recommendations provided under Subsection |
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| 39 | 39 | | (e-1), the department shall annually reduce the staff-to-child |
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| 40 | 40 | | ratios and group sizes applicable to nonresidential child-care |
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| 41 | 41 | | facilities that provide care for less than 24 hours a day subject to |
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| 42 | 42 | | the following limitations: |
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| 43 | 43 | | (1) the reduced ratios and group sizes may not be |
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| 44 | 44 | | higher than the ratios and group sizes in the department's proposed |
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| 45 | 45 | | rules published in the Texas Register on June 11, 2010; |
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| 46 | 46 | | (2) ratios may not be reduced by more than three |
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| 47 | 47 | | children per each age group; and |
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| 48 | 48 | | (3) the staff-to-child ratios for children ages 17 |
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| 49 | 49 | | months of age and younger may not be reduced. |
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| 50 | 50 | | (e-3) Subsection (e-2) and this subsection expire September |
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| 51 | 51 | | 1, 2020. |
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| 52 | 52 | | SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 302, Labor Code, is |
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| 53 | 53 | | amended by adding Section 302.0048 to read as follows: |
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| 54 | 54 | | Sec. 302.0048. FEDERAL MONEY FOR CHILD CARE. (a) In |
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| 55 | 55 | | allocating federal grant money to local workforce development |
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| 56 | 56 | | boards to purchase nonresidential child-care services from |
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| 57 | 57 | | facilities that provide care for less than 24 hours a day, the |
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| 58 | 58 | | commission shall authorize each board to increase the reimbursement |
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| 59 | 59 | | rates for the child-care services to amounts the board determines |
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| 60 | 60 | | affordable based on the total amount allocated to the board by the |
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| 61 | 61 | | commission. |
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| 62 | 62 | | (b) From the money allocated to a local workforce |
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| 63 | 63 | | development board under Subsection (a), the board must reimburse |
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| 64 | 64 | | the providers of nonresidential child-care services described by |
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| 65 | 65 | | Subsection (a) at a rate equal to at least 85 percent of the average |
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| 66 | 66 | | rate charged by the local providers of those services. |
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| 67 | 67 | | (c) The commission may not establish a maximum rate of |
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| 68 | 68 | | reimbursement by local workforce development boards for |
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| 69 | 69 | | nonresidential child-care services described in this section. |
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| 70 | 70 | | SECTION 3. Not later than October 1, 2015, the governor |
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| 71 | 71 | | shall appoint the nine members to the committee on licensing |
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| 72 | 72 | | standards as provided by Section 42.0221, Human Resources Code, as |
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| 73 | 73 | | amended by this Act. The initial members of the committee on |
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| 74 | 74 | | licensing standards appointed under this section shall draw lots to |
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| 75 | 75 | | determine which members will serve terms expiring February 1, 2016, |
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| 76 | 76 | | and which members will serve terms expiring February 1, 2017. |
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| 77 | 77 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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