Fixing the lack of affordable child care throughout Minnesota is the focus of three measures that won overwhelming support Monday from state senators.
The measures, which all passed the Senate with support from both Republicans and DFLers, relax some regulations on child care providers.
Republican senators who introduced the bills said many child care providers have left the business — or are thinking about it — in part because of an increasingly complex set of rules and regulations that they must follow to keep their doors open. That means a growing number of families are facing a dearth of child care options and employers are struggling to attract workers to communities where day care is in short supply.
"In rural Minnesota, the lack of availability of child care has become a crisis mode," said Sen. Bill Weber, R-Luverne. "In terms of our workforce development, it's even overtaking the housing issue when it comes to providing for the workers and the working families."
The votes for two of the measures were unanimous, and the third had just five votes in opposition.
They are primarily targeted at in-home child care facilities: One loosens some rules related to staffing, including allowing some facilities to hire people who don't meeting specific qualifications but are working on additional training. It also requires the Department of Human Services to do more to analyze regulations to "reduce barriers and unnecessary administrative burdens" for child care providers.
A second measure makes child care providers exempt from rules meant for caretakers of people with disabilities, while a third revises background-check requirements for children who live in a home that also serves as a day care center.
While adults who live or work in a home used for child care would continue to have to undergo a comprehensive screening, including fingerprinting, minor children would undergo a less rigorous screening using only their name and birth date.
