Keeping Texas Children Safe

Children’s safety is a primary concern for parents and for Texas state legislators.

Last year it came to our attention that some children of working parents were staying in unregistered child care facilities located on the premises of companies where the children’s parents were employed.

At first glance on-site day care offers both economic and social benefits to employers and employees.  Employees’ peace of mind increases when their children are close at hand resulting in increased productivity and as a bonus parents are able to spend more time with their children.

While no one argues the benefits of on-site day care facilities there is a downside for companies that are attempting to provide day care for their employees’ children.  Companies must comply with state regulations for day care centers and coming into compliance may be both expensive and time-consuming.

State licensing officials who visited companies’ day care centers realized that although the companies needed a license to operate they did not fit either of the licensing categories for day care centers.  Company centers were neither traditional day care centers nor in-home day care facilities.

To encourage small businesses that want to offer day care to employees we passed House Bill 1385 during this year’s regular legislative session.  This bill creates a system that will allow small business owners to provide on-site child care for their employees by laying out an efficient and streamlined framework under which unregistered day care centers may be brought into compliance.

The new law applies to companies with fewer than 50 employees and on-site workplace care for up to 12 children.

Employees who are offered on-site day care are indeed fortunate.  The vast majority of parents must search for a day care facility that meets their standards of quality location and price.  The Department of Protective and Family Services’ (DPFS) Web site:  www.dfps.state.tx.us/Child_Care/Search_Texas_Child_Care/  may help parents find the right day care facility without their spending time looking through phone books or driving around neighborhoods.

Once a possible day care facility has been selected parents may access information about it on the Web site including inspection results.  Only regulated child care facilities are listed.

Unfortunately many child care operations are unlicensed ones that may seem attractive because of price.  Although the price may seem right parents should know that last year 18 children died in unregulated care and 10 died in 2005.

To find out more about choosing a day care center on the DPFS Web site click on “Don’t Be in the Dark About Child Care:” http://www.dfps.state.tx.us/Child_Care/dontbeinthedark/

Parents without computers may call the Day Care Information Phone Line toll-free at (800) 862-5252 to ask about the result of any facility’s inspection.  For the sake of their children when choosing a day care facility parents should do their homework.