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COMMITTEE ACTION:
SSB 3065 – Child Care Ratios
SSB 3065, as amended, increases the number of children one person can care for at child care centers from one to seven (instead of six) for two-year-old children, and one to 10 (instead of eight) for three-year-old children. Child care ratio means the number of adults who are present to teach and care for children who are playing, eating, sleeping and other activities. Lower ratios mean children get more one-on-one attention to help them feel safe and secure. This bill allows higher ratios.
[2/9: 7-5, party-line (No: Democrats; Excused: Johnson)]
SSB 3102 – Family First
SSB 3102 is a Department of Humans Services (DHS) bill mostly in response to the federal Family First Prevention Services Act (Family First), which was signed into law in February 2018. Family First provides new directives on services eligible for Title IV-E (Foster Care) funds. States are entitled to claim partial federal reimbursement for the cost of providing foster care, adoptions assistance and kinship guardianship assistance to children who meet federal eligibility criteria.
Family First shifts reimbursement from funding traditionally used to support foster care placements into prevention services to:
The changes in the bill are intended to align Chapter 232 (Juvenile Justice) with Family First, federal regulations and case law. It also creates consistency throughout various sections of Chapter 232. There are three categories of changes in the bill: 1) technical; 2) Family First related; and 3) substantive.
Family First related:
Substantive changes:
A floor amendment is expected.
[2/9: short form (Excused: Johnson)]
SSB 3105 Certificate of Need
SSB 3105 eliminates the Certificate of Need (CON) process for all health facilities except nursing facilities. The CON is a regulatory review process that requires application to the Department of Public Health. Facilities must receive the approved certificate prior to offering or developing new or changed institutional health services.
Currently, the CON applies to hospitals, nursing homes, outpatient surgery centers or anyone purchasing medical equipment valued above $1.5 million. Projects are reviewed by the State Health Facilities Council against specified criteria. SSB 3105 eliminates the CON process for all facilities except nursing facilities. It also makes many conforming changes to definitions and Code citations.
A floor amendment is expected.
[2/9: 7-5, party-line (No: Democrats; Excused: Johnson)]