Washington State House of Representatives Office of Program Research	BILL ANALYSIS
Children & Family Services Committee

HB 2799

Brief Description:  Requiring that unfounded reports of child abuse or neglect by child day‑care centers and family day‑care providers be purged after three years.

Sponsors:  Representatives Lantz, Delvin, Rockefeller, Quall, Talcott, Carrell and Schual‑Berke.

Brief Summary of Bill

$Requires the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) to purge unfounded reports of abuse and neglect against licensed child day‑care centers and family day-care providers after three years unless an additional report has been received during the intervening three years.

Hearing Date:  2/12/02

Staff:  Deborah Frazier (786‑7152).

Background:

The DSHS licenses day-care settings serving approximately 180,000 children.

Family day‑care homes serve about 35 percent of all children in licensed day-care.  Each family day‑care is the provider's residence, and serves 12 or fewer children per home.

Child day‑care centers serve about 65 percent of all children in licensed day‑care.  Centers are not residences, and the number of children served is determined by the space available.  The majority of centers serve 60 or fewer children.

Those seeking child care may contact the department for licensing information about child care providers, including whether there is a record of any reports of abuse or neglect about the provider.  If there are reports, the person seeking the information can learn that a report was determined to be unfounded, but not the reasons for the determination.

Any report of abuse or neglect is recorded in the department's information system.  If the report is determined to be unfounded, the record is purged after six years unless an additional report has been received in the intervening period.

Summary of Bill:

The department is required  to purge reports of abuse and neglect against licensed child day‑care centers and family day-care providers, if the reports were determined to be unfounded, at the end of three years from the receipt of the report.  This purge shall occur unless an additional report has been received during the intervening three years.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Not Requested.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.