BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3670

By: Carter

Human Services

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

While employees of day-care centers and childcare centers are required to receive a certain number of hours of training, the training requirements for the people training those employees are not clear, and, in some cases, an instructor may not be required to receive any training or have any specific knowledge or credentials.  C.S.H.B. 3670 seeks to remedy this problem by establishing requirements for employee training for certain childcare facilities and for persons providing that training.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3670 amends the Human Resources Code to require the training required by provisions of law establishing minimum training standards for certain facilities, homes, and agencies that provide child-care services to be appropriately targeted and relevant to the age of the children who will receive care from the individual receiving training. The bill requires such training to be provided by a person who:

· is a training provider registered with the Texas Early Care and Education Career Development System's Texas Trainer Registry maintained by the Texas Head Start State Collaboration Office;

· is an instructor at a public or private secondary school or at a public or private institution of higher education, who teaches early childhood development or another relevant course, as determined by rules adopted by the commissioner of education and the commissioner of higher education;

· is an employee of a state agency with relevant expertise;

· is a physician, psychologist, licensed professional counselor, social worker, or registered nurse;

· holds a generally recognized credential or possesses documented knowledge relevant to the training the person will provide;

· is a registered family home care provider or director of a day-care center or group day-care home in good standing with the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), if applicable, and who has demonstrated core knowledge in child development and caregiving and is only providing training at the home or center in which the provider or director and the person receiving training are employed; or

· has at least two years of experience working in child development, a child development program, early childhood education, a childhood education program, or a Head Start or Early Head Start program and has been awarded a child development associate (CDA) credential; or holds at least an associate's degree in child development, early childhood education, or a related field.

C.S.H.B. 3670 authorizes a registered family home care provider or director of a day-care center or group day-care home in good standing with DFPS to provide training under the bill's provisions only if DFPS has not taken certain disciplinary action relating to a license, listing, or registration, or imposed certain administrative penalties, other than an evaluation, against the license, listing, or registration of the person or the home or center for which the person is a provider or director during the two-year period preceding the date on which the person provides the training.

EFFECTIVE DATE

January 1, 2012.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 3670 contains provisions not included in the original requiring the training required by provisions of law establishing the minimum training standards of certain facilities, homes, and agencies that provide childcare services to be appropriately targeted and relevant to the age of the children who will receive care from the individual receiving training and establishing requirements for persons providing that training.

C.S.H.B. 3670 omits a provision included in the original requiring the Department of Family and Protective Services by rule to establish and implement statewide accreditation standards for facilities providing child care training to an employee or operator of a day-care center or group day-care home.

C.S.H.B. 3670 differs from the original by making the bill effective January 1, 2012, whereas the original makes the bill effective on passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2011.