(a) No person, group of persons, association, organization, corporation, institution or agency, public or private, shall maintain a family child care home, as defined in section 19a-77, without a license issued by the Commissioner of Early Childhood. Licensure forms shall be obtained from the Office of Early Childhood. Applications for licensure shall be made to the commissioner on forms provided by the office and shall contain the information required by regulations adopted under this section. The licensure and application forms shall contain a notice that false statements made therein are punishable in accordance with section 53a-157b. Applicants shall state, in writing, that they are in compliance with the regulations adopted by the commissioner pursuant to subsection (f) of this section. Before a family child care home license is granted, the office shall make an inquiry and investigation which shall include a visit and inspection of the premises for which the license is requested. Any inspection conducted by the office shall include an inspection for evident sources of lead poisoning. The office shall provide for a chemical analysis of any paint chips found on such premises. Neither the commissioner nor the commissioner’s designee shall require an annual inspection for homes seeking license renewal or for licensed homes, except that the commissioner or the commissioner’s designee shall make an unannounced visit, inspection or investigation of each licensed family child care home at least once every year. A licensed family child care home shall not be subject to any conditions on the operation of such home by local officials, other than those imposed by the office pursuant to this subsection, if the home complies with all local codes and ordinances applicable to single and multifamily dwellings.

(b) No person shall act as an assistant or substitute staff member to a person or entity maintaining a family child care home, as defined in section 19a-77, without an approval issued by the commissioner. Any person seeking to act as an assistant or substitute staff member in a family child care home shall submit an application for such approval to the office. Applications for approval shall: (1) Be made to the commissioner on forms provided by the office, (2) contain the information required by regulations adopted under this section, and (3) be accompanied by a fee of fifteen dollars. The approval application forms shall contain a notice that false statements made in such form are punishable in accordance with section 53a-157b.

(c) The commissioner, within available appropriations, shall require each initial applicant or prospective employee of a family child care home in a position requiring the provision of care to a child, including an assistant or substitute staff member and each household member who is sixteen years of age or older, to submit to comprehensive background checks, including state and national criminal history records checks. The criminal history records checks required pursuant to this subsection shall be conducted in accordance with section 29-17a. The commissioner shall also request a check of the state child abuse registry established pursuant to section 17a-101k. The commissioner shall notify each licensee of the provisions of this subsection. For purposes of this subsection, “household member” means any person, other than the person who is licensed to conduct, operate or maintain a family child care home, who resides in the family child care home, such as the licensee’s spouse or children, tenants and any other occupant.

(d) An application for initial licensure pursuant to this section shall be accompanied by a fee of forty dollars and such license shall be issued for a term of four years. An application for renewal of a license issued pursuant to this section shall be accompanied by a fee of forty dollars and a certification from the licensee that any child enrolled in the family child care home has received age-appropriate immunizations in accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to subsection (f) of this section. A license issued pursuant to this section shall be renewed for a term of four years. In the case of an applicant submitting an application for renewal of a license that has expired, and who has ceased operations of a family child care home due to such expired license, the commissioner may renew such expired license within thirty days of the date of such expiration upon receipt of an application for renewal that is accompanied by such fee and such certification.

(e) An application for initial staff approval or renewal of staff approval shall be accompanied by a fee of fifteen dollars. Such approvals shall be issued or renewed for a term of two years.

(f) The commissioner shall adopt regulations, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, to assure that family child care homes, as defined in section 19a-77, shall meet the health, educational and social needs of children utilizing such homes. Such regulations shall ensure that the family child care home is treated as a residence, and not an institutional facility. Such regulations shall specify that each child be protected as age-appropriate by adequate immunization against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, poliomyelitis, measles, mumps, rubella, hemophilus influenzae type B and any other vaccine required by the schedule of active immunization adopted pursuant to section 19a-7f. Such regulations shall provide appropriate exemptions for children for whom such immunization is medically contraindicated and for children whose parents or guardian objects to such immunization on religious grounds and require that any such objection be accompanied by a statement from such parents or guardian that such immunization would be contrary to the religious beliefs of such child or the parents or guardian of such child, which statement shall be acknowledged, in accordance with the provisions of sections 1-32, 1-34 and 1-35, by (1) a judge of a court of record or a family support magistrate, (2) a clerk or deputy clerk of a court having a seal, (3) a town clerk, (4) a notary public, (5) a justice of the peace, or (6) an attorney admitted to the bar of this state. Such regulations shall also specify conditions under which family child care home providers may administer tests to monitor glucose levels in a child with diagnosed diabetes mellitus, and administer medicinal preparations, including controlled drugs specified in the regulations by the commissioner, to a child receiving child care services at a family child care home pursuant to a written order of a physician licensed to practice medicine in this or another state, an advanced practice registered nurse licensed to prescribe in accordance with section 20-94a or a physician assistant licensed to prescribe in accordance with section 20-12d, and the written authorization of a parent or guardian of such child. Such regulations shall specify appropriate standards for extended care and intermittent short-term overnight care. The commissioner shall inform each licensee, by way of a plain language summary provided not later than sixty days after the regulation’s effective date, of any new or changed regulations adopted under this subsection with which a licensee must comply.

(g) Upon the declaration by the Governor of a civil preparedness emergency pursuant to section 28-9 or a public health emergency pursuant to section 19a-131a, the commissioner may waive the provisions of any regulation adopted pursuant to this section if the commissioner determines that such waiver would not endanger the life, safety or health of any child. The commissioner shall prescribe the duration of such waiver, provided such waiver shall not extend beyond the duration of the declared emergency. The commissioner shall establish the criteria by which a waiver request shall be made and the conditions for which a waiver will be granted or denied. The provisions of section 19a-84 shall not apply to a denial of a waiver request under this subsection.

(P.A. 94-181, S. 1, 7; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58; 95-360, S. 13, 32; P.A. 96-19, S. 1; 96-180, S. 55, 166; P.A. 97-14, S. 2; 97-259, S. 36, 41; P.A. 98-250, S. 15, 39; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 98-1, S. 79, 121; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 99-2, S. 70; P.A. 00-27, S. 11, 12, 24; P.A. 01-175, S. 16, 32; P.A. 03-243, S. 12; P.A. 05-207, S. 10; P.A. 07-129, S. 4; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3, S. 169; P.A. 11-242, S. 17; P.A. 13-208, S. 6; P.A. 14-39, S. 56; P.A. 15-174, S. 3; 15-227, S. 8, 25; P.A. 16-131, S. 1; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 17-2, S. 175.)

History: P.A. 94-181 transferred responsibility for licensing family day care homes from social services department to public health and addiction services department, as a result of which Subsecs. (b) to (d), inclusive, were transferred editorially by the Revisors to Sec. 19a-87a in 1995; P.A. 94-181 also added provision in Subsec. (c) requiring regulations to ensure family day care homes are treated as residences rather than as institutional facilities, effective July 1, 1994; P.A. 95-257 replaced Commissioner and Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Commissioner and Department of Public Health, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 95-360 deleted department’s authority to purchase services in Subsec. (a) and amended Subsec. (c) to establish increase in fees after 1995, effective July 13, 1995; P.A. 96-19 expanded written orders by physicians in Subsec. (b) to include advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants; P.A. 96-180 made a technical change in Subsec. (a), substituting reference to Sec. 53a-157b for Sec. 53a-157, effective June 3, 1996; P.A. 97-14 added provision re diabetes monitoring in former Subsec. (b); P.A. 97-259 added new Subsec. (b) re criminal records checks and child abuse registry checks and redesignated for Subsecs. (b) and (c) as Subsecs. (c) and (d), effective July 1, 1997; P.A. 98-250 amended Subsec. (c) to require plain language summary of regulations, effective July 1, 1998; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 98-1 made a technical change in Subsec. (b), effective June 24, 1998; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 99-2 amended Subsec. (b) by changing “criminal records check” and “criminal history records checks” to “fingerprint criminal records check” and “fingerprint criminal history records checks”; P.A. 00-27 made technical changes in Subsecs. (a) and (d), effective May 1, 2000; P.A. 01-175 amended Subsec. (b) by replacing language re fingerprint criminal records checks as a permissive request with language re mandatory state and national criminal history records checks pursuant to Sec. 29-17a, deleted language re fee and made technical changes, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 03-243 added “for perpetrator information” in Subsec. (b); P.A. 05-207 amended Subsec. (b) to delete requirement that commissioner request check of state child abuse registry for perpetrator information; P.A. 07-129 amended Subsec. (a) to prohibit commissioner’s designee from requiring annual inspection and to allow commissioner’s designee to make unannounced visits during customary business hours, amended Subsec. (d) to limit $20 fee for initial licensure and license renewals to applications submitted prior to October 1, 2008, and added Subsec. (e) to extend the license term from 2 to 4 years and increase license fee from $20 to $40 for licenses issued on and after October 1, 2008; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3 amended Subsec. (e) to increase license fee from $40 to $80; P.A. 11-242 added new Subsec. (b) re approval to act as assistant or substitute staff member in a family day care home, redesignated existing Subsec. (b) as Subsec. (c) and amended same to add provision re assistant or substitute staff member, added new Subsec. (d) re $40 license fee, 4-year license term and child immunization requirements, added new Subsec. (e) re initial and renewal applications for staff approval, redesignated existing Subsec. (c) as Subsec. (f) and deleted former Subsecs. (d) and (e) re license applications submitted prior to October 1, 2008, and licenses issued on and after October 1, 2008; P.A. 13-208 amended Subsec. (b)(3) to increase fee from $15 to $20; P.A. 14-39 replaced references to Commissioner and Department of Public Health with references to Commissioner and Office of Early Childhood and amended Subsec. (a) by replacing provision re unannounced visits to at least 33 1/3 per cent of licensed family day care homes each year with provision re unannounced visit, inspection or investigation of each licensed family day care home at least once every year, effective July 1, 2014; P.A. 15-174 amended Subsec. (f) to add provision re objection on religious grounds to be accompanied by acknowledged statement that immunization would be contrary to religious beliefs, effective July 1, 2015; P.A. 15-227 replaced “family day care home” and “family day care homes” with “family child care home” and “family child care homes”, respectively, amended Subsec. (d) by adding provisions re renewal of expired license, amended Subsec. (f) by replacing “day care services” with “child care services”, and added Subsec. (g) re waiver of regulations during civil preparedness or public health emergency, effective July 1, 2015; P.A. 16-131 amended Subsec. (c) by adding provision re household member who is age 16 or older and adding definition of “household member”, effective June 7, 2016; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 17-2 amended Subsec. (c) by adding “comprehensive background checks, including”, effective October 31, 2017.