Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4529 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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1	1		By: Hefner H.B. No. 4529
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4	6		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	7		AN ACT
6	8		relating to provisional child care licensing.
7	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	10		SECTION 1. Section 42.041, Government Code, is amended to
9	11		read as follows:
10	12		Sec. 42.041. REQUIRED LICENSE. (a) No person may operate a
11	13		child-care facility or child-placing agency without a license
12	14		issued by the department.
13	15		(b) This section does not apply to:
14	16		(1) a state-operated facility;
15	17		(2) an agency foster home;
16	18		(3) a facility that is operated in connection with a
17	19		shopping center, business, religious organization, or
18	20		establishment where children are cared for during short periods
19	21		while parents or persons responsible for the children are attending
20	22		religious services, shopping, or engaging in other activities,
21	23		including retreats or classes for religious instruction, on or near
22	24		the premises, that does not advertise as a child-care facility or
23	25		day-care center, and that informs parents that it is not licensed by
24	26		the state;
25	27		(4) a school or class for religious instruction that
26	28		does not last longer than two weeks and is conducted by a religious
27	29		organization during the summer months;
28	30		(5) a youth camp licensed by the Department of State
29	31		Health Services;
30	32		(6) a facility licensed, operated, certified, or
31	33		registered by another state agency;
32	34		(7) an educational facility that is accredited by the
33	35		Texas Education Agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and
34	36		Schools, or an accreditation body that is a member of the Texas
35	37		Private School Accreditation Commission and that operates
36	38		primarily for educational purposes for prekindergarten and above, a
37	39		before-school or after-school program operated directly by an
38	40		accredited educational facility, or a before-school or
39	41		after-school program operated by another entity under contract with
40	42		the educational facility, if the Texas Education Agency, the
41	43		Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, or the other
42	44		accreditation body, as applicable, has approved the curriculum
43	45		content of the before-school or after-school program operated under
44	46		the contract;
45	47		(8) an educational facility that operates solely for
46	48		educational purposes for prekindergarten through at least grade
47	49		two, that does not provide custodial care for more than one hour
48	50		during the hours before or after the customary school day, and that
49	51		is a member of an organization that promulgates, publishes, and
50	52		requires compliance with health, safety, fire, and sanitation
51	53		standards equal to standards required by state, municipal, and
52	54		county codes;
53	55		(9) a kindergarten or preschool educational program
54	56		that is operated as part of a public school or a private school
55	57		accredited by the Texas Education Agency, that offers educational
56	58		programs through grade six, and that does not provide custodial
57	59		care during the hours before or after the customary school day;
58	60		(10) a family home, whether registered or listed;
59	61		(11) an educational facility that is integral to and
60	62		inseparable from its sponsoring religious organization or an
61	63		educational facility both of which do not provide custodial care
62	64		for more than two hours maximum per day, and that offers an
63	65		educational program in one or more of the following:
64	66		prekindergarten through at least grade three, elementary grades, or
65	67		secondary grades;
66	68		(12) an emergency shelter facility, other than a
67	69		facility that would otherwise require a license as a child-care
68	70		facility under this section, that provides shelter or care to a
69	71		minor and the minor's child or children, if any, under Section
70	72		32.201, Family Code, if the facility:
71	73		(A) is currently under a contract with a state or
72	74		federal agency; or
73	75		(B) meets the requirements listed under Section
74	76		51.005(b)(3);
75	77		(13) a juvenile detention facility certified under
76	78		Section 51.12, Family Code, a juvenile correctional facility
77	79		certified under Section 51.125, Family Code, a juvenile facility
78	80		providing services solely for the Texas Juvenile Justice
79	81		Department, or any other correctional facility for children
80	82		operated or regulated by another state agency or by a political
81	83		subdivision of the state;
82	84		(14) an elementary-age (ages 5-13) recreation program
83	85		operated by a municipality provided the governing body of the
84	86		municipality annually adopts standards of care by ordinance after a
85	87		public hearing for such programs, that such standards are provided
86	88		to the parents of each program participant, and that the ordinances
87	89		shall include, at a minimum, staffing ratios, minimum staff
88	90		qualifications, minimum facility, health, and safety standards,
89	91		and mechanisms for monitoring and enforcing the adopted local
90	92		standards; and further provided that parents be informed that the
91	93		program is not licensed by the state and the program may not be
92	94		advertised as a child-care facility;
93	95		(15) an annual youth camp held in a municipality with a
94	96		population of more than 1.5 million that operates for not more than
95	97		three months and that has been operated for at least 10 years by a
96	98		nonprofit organization that provides care for the homeless;
97	99		(16) a food distribution program that:
98	100		(A) serves an evening meal to children two years
99	101		of age or older; and
100	102		(B) is operated by a nonprofit food bank in a
101	103		nonprofit, religious, or educational facility for not more than two
102	104		hours a day on regular business days;
103	105		(17) a child-care facility that operates for less than
104	106		three consecutive weeks and less than 40 days in a period of 12
105	107		months;
106	108		(18) a program:
107	109		(A) in which a child receives direct instruction
108	110		in a single skill, talent, ability, expertise, or proficiency;
109	111		(B) that does not provide services or offerings
110	112		that are not directly related to the single talent, ability,
111	113		expertise, or proficiency;
112	114		(C) that does not advertise or otherwise
113	115		represent that the program is a child-care facility, day-care
114	116		center, or licensed before-school or after-school program or that
115	117		the program offers child-care services;
116	118		(D) that informs the parent or guardian:
117	119		(i) that the program is not licensed by the
118	120		state; and
119	121		(ii) about the physical risks a child may
120	122		face while participating in the program; and
121	123		(E) that conducts background checks for all
122	124		program employees and volunteers who work with children in the
123	125		program using information that is obtained from the Department of
124	126		Public Safety;
125	127		(19) an elementary-age (ages 5-13) recreation program
126	128		that:
127	129		(A) adopts standards of care, including
128	130		standards relating to staff ratios, staff training, health, and
129	131		safety;
130	132		(B) provides a mechanism for monitoring and
131	133		enforcing the standards and receiving complaints from parents of
132	134		enrolled children;
133	135		(C) does not advertise as or otherwise represent
134	136		the program as a child-care facility, day-care center, or licensed
135	137		before-school or after-school program or that the program offers
136	138		child-care services;
137	139		(D) informs parents that the program is not
138	140		licensed by the state;
139	141		(E) is organized as a nonprofit organization or
140	142		is located on the premises of a participant's residence;
141	143		(F) does not accept any remuneration other than a
142	144		nominal annual membership fee;
143	145		(G) does not solicit donations as compensation or
144	146		payment for any good or service provided as part of the program; and
145	147		(H) conducts background checks for all program
146	148		employees and volunteers who work with children in the program
147	149		using information that is obtained from the Department of Public
148	150		Safety;
149	151		(20) a living arrangement in a caretaker's home
150	152		involving one or more children or a sibling group, excluding
151	153		children who are related to the caretaker, in which the caretaker:
152	154		(A) had a prior relationship with the child or
153	155		sibling group or other family members of the child or sibling group;
154	156		(B) does not care for more than one unrelated
155	157		child or sibling group;
156	158		(C) does not receive compensation or solicit
157	159		donations for the care of the child or sibling group; and
158	160		(D) has a written agreement with the parent to
159	161		care for the child or sibling group;
160	162		(21) a living arrangement in a caretaker's home
161	163		involving one or more children or a sibling group, excluding
162	164		children who are related to the caretaker, in which:
163	165		(A) the department is the managing conservator of
164	166		the child or sibling group;
165	167		(B) the department placed the child or sibling
166	168		group in the caretaker's home; and
167	169		(C) the caretaker had a long-standing and
168	170		significant relationship with the child or sibling group, or the
169	171		family of the child or sibling group, before the child or sibling
170	172		group was placed with the caretaker;
171	173		(22) a living arrangement in a caretaker's home
172	174		involving one or more children or a sibling group, excluding
173	175		children who are related to the caretaker, in which the child is in
174	176		the United States on a time-limited visa under the sponsorship of
175	177		the caretaker or of a sponsoring organization;
176	178		(23) a facility operated by a nonprofit organization
177	179		that:
178	180		(A) does not otherwise operate as a child-care
179	181		facility that is required to be licensed under this section;
180	182		(B) provides emergency shelter and care for not
181	183		more than 15 days to children 13 years of age or older but younger
182	184		than 18 years of age who are victims of human trafficking alleged
183	185		under Section 20A.02, Penal Code;
184	186		(C) is located in a municipality with a
185	187		population of at least 600,000 that is in a county on an
186	188		international border; and
187	189		(D) meets one of the following criteria:
188	190		(i) is licensed by, or operates under an
189	191		agreement with, a state or federal agency to provide shelter and
190	192		care to children; or
191	193		(ii) meets the eligibility requirements for
192	194		a contract under Section 51.005(b)(3);
193	195		(24) a facility that provides respite care exclusively
194	196		for a local mental health authority under a contract with the local
195	197		mental health authority; or
196	198		(25) a living arrangement in a caretaker's home
197	199		involving one or more children or a sibling group in which the
198	200		caretaker:
199	201		(A) has a written authorization agreement under
200	202		Chapter 34, Family Code, with the parent of each child or sibling
201	203		group to care for each child or sibling group;
202	204		(B) does not care for more than six children,
203	205		excluding children who are related to the caretaker; and
204	206		(C) does not receive compensation for caring for
205	207		any child or sibling group;
206	208		(26) a childcare provider on a military base or
207	209		federal property, or a facility licensed as a family child care
208	210		provider by a branch of the United States Department of Defense.
209	211		SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.