Subcommittee on Early Childhood Education

This bill would require the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), upon issuing an order to close a child care center pursuant to a determination that such center is being operated in a manner that may give rise to an imminent health hazard or otherwise presents a risk of endangering the health or safety of children or other persons, to post a copy of the closing order at the entrance to the child care center, and to provide a copy of the closing order to the parents or other persons who arrive at the child care center. This bill would also require DOHMH to post summary child care service inspection reports no later than 24 hours following each inspection of a child care service.

This bill would require an agency or office designated by the mayor to establish and administer a program to assist people without experience in child care to complete educational programs that satisfy the requirements of the Department of Education or the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to work in child care. The agency or office would provide loans or grants to participants and the participants in the program would be required to agree to work in child care in New York City for at least 5 years after finishing the program. The program would also be required to provide child care services to program participants during hours of the educational program and conduct outreach about its offerings to the public and high school students in New York City. The program must begin processing applications no later than 6 months after the effective date of the local law.

This bill would require the Department of Education (DOE) to report information quarterly on 3-K and Pre-K applicants, seat capacity, enrollment, and vacancies. This bill would require such information to be disaggregated by seat type and seat setting. Additionally, this bill would require DOE to report on 3-K outreach efforts, including the number of DOE staff assigned to 3-K outreach, the number of households reached by outreach efforts, the total budgeted amount for 3-K outreach, the number of outreach events related to 3-K hosted or attended by DOE staff, and information on the advertising methods used for 3-K outreach. This bill would also require DOE to report on the number and percentage of staff vacancies in each 3-K and pre-K program, disaggregated by staff title.

This bill would require the provision of childcare services, upon request, for certain meetings open to the public.

This bill would establish a pilot program to provide financial assistance to the owners of vacant commercial premises to undertake the work necessary to make the premises compliant with the standards for premises used for child care programs. The program would operate in areas where there are both a high number of vacant commercial premises and a low number of child care slots.

This bill would require the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) to consult with the Department of Education (DOE) when completing background checks for current or prospective child care providers, employees, and volunteers. Upon receiving a request for a background check, DOHMH would be required to consult with DOE to determine whether DOE has already completed a background check for the individual within the previous two years. If so, DOHMH would be required to request any relevant information obtained through the DOE background check required to satisfy the requirements for a background check conducted by DOHMH. DOHMH would remain required to complete any additional searches and obtain any additional information for an individual needed to satisfy the requirements for the agency’s background checks pursuant to any federal or state laws, rules or regulations, before clearing an individual for work as a child care provider or employee.