Senate Study Bill 3154 - Introduced SENATE FILE _____ BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION BILL BY CHAIRPERSON QUIRMBACH) A BILL FOR An Act relating to standards and licensure for certain 1 children’s centers. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 6008XC (3) 86 kh/rj

S.F. _____ Section 1. Section 237B.1, subsection 3, Code 2016, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 3. In establishing the initial and subsequent standards, 3 the department of human services shall review other 4 certification and licensing standards applicable to the 5 centers. The standards established by the department shall 6 be broad facility standards for the protection of children’s 7 safety. The department shall also apply criminal and abuse 8 registry background check requirements for the persons who own, 9 operate, staff, participate in, or otherwise have contact with 10 the children receiving services from a children’s center. The 11 background check requirements shall be substantially equivalent 12 to those applied under chapter 237 for a child foster care 13 facility provider. The Except as provided in section 237B.2, 14 the department of human services shall not establish program 15 standards or other requirements under this section involving 16 program development or oversight of the programs provided to 17 the children served by children’s centers. 18 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 237B.2 School, academy, or training 19 institute. 20 1. A children’s center that includes in the official 21 name of the center the word “school”, “academy”, or the term 22 “training institute” or a similar word or term and charges for 23 the educational services the center provides to children who 24 are under the age of eighteen; operates a facility for housing, 25 boarding, or providing residential services for children under 26 the age of eighteen; or provides counseling, behavioral, or 27 therapeutic services to children under the age of eighteen, 28 shall respectively meet the following applicable requirements: 29 a. (1) Include in any promotional, advertising, and 30 marketing materials regarding the center available in print, 31 broadcast, or via the internet or by any other means the 32 following information: 33 (a) Whether the center meets the accreditation requirements 34 of section 256.11 and all other accreditation standards adopted 35 -1- LSB 6008XC (3) 86 kh/rj 1/ 4

S.F. _____ by rule by the state board of education. 1 (b) The fee the center charges for each of the services 2 the center offers or provides to children under the age of 3 eighteen. 4 (2) Submit annually to the department of education a true 5 statement of the center’s financial condition and the refund 6 policy of the center. 7 b. Be licensed as a child foster care facility under chapter 8 237. Notwithstanding section 237.7, the administrator, as 9 defined in section 237.1, shall cause unannounced inspections 10 of the center to be conducted at least quarterly by the 11 department of inspections and appeals. 12 c. Be licensed under chapter 235 or under this chapter 13 by the department of human services to provide child welfare 14 services such as behavioral, counseling, or therapeutic 15 services to children in the center. 16 2. The state board of education, the department of 17 inspections and appeals, and the department of human services 18 may each adopt rules relating to its responsibilities to 19 administer this section, to establish appropriate professional 20 standards for centers and for the persons who provide 21 instructional, residential, and health-related services 22 to children residing at centers, and to establish monetary 23 penalties for violations of this section and a procedure for 24 the collection of the penalties. 25 EXPLANATION 26 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 27 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 28 This bill provides for the licensure and regulation of 29 certain children’s centers. 30 Currently, Code section 237B.1 allows the department of 31 human services to establish broad facility standards for 32 the protection of children’s safety for children served 33 by children’s centers, but prohibits the department from 34 establishing program development or oversight standards. 35 -2- LSB 6008XC (3) 86 kh/rj 2/ 4

S.F. _____ Children’s centers are defined as a privately funded facility 1 designed to serve seven or more children at any one time who 2 are not under the custody or authority of the department of 3 human services, juvenile court, or another governmental agency, 4 and that offers child care, respite care, family support 5 services, medical equipment therapeutic day programming, 6 educational enrichment, or housing. 7 As an exception to that prohibition on establishing specific 8 program standards, the bill provides that a children’s center, 9 which includes in the official name of the center the word 10 “school”, “academy”, or the term “training institute” or a 11 similar word or term and charges for the educational services 12 the center provides to children who are under the age of 13 18; operates a facility for housing, boarding, or providing 14 residential services for children under the age of 18; or 15 provides counseling, behavioral, or therapeutic services to 16 children under the age of 18, must respectively meet the 17 following applicable requirements: 18 1. Include in any promotional, advertising, and marketing 19 materials regarding the center available in print, broadcast, 20 or via the internet information regarding whether it meets the 21 state’s educational accreditation standards and the fees it 22 charges for its services; and submit annually to the department 23 of education a true statement of the center’s financial 24 condition and the refund policy of the center. 25 2. Be licensed as a child foster care facility and subject to 26 unannounced inspections by the department of inspections and 27 appeals at least quarterly. 28 3. Be licensed by the department of human services to provide 29 child welfare services such as behavioral, counseling, or 30 therapeutic services to children in the center. 31 The state board of education, the department of inspections 32 and appeals, and the department of human services may each 33 adopt rules relating to its responsibilities to administer the 34 Code section, to establish appropriate professional standards 35 -3- LSB 6008XC (3) 86 kh/rj 3/ 4

S.F. _____ for centers and for the persons who provide instructional, 1 residential, and health-related services to children residing 2 at centers, and to establish monetary penalties for violations 3 of the Code section and a procedure for collection of the 4 penalties. 5 -4- LSB 6008XC (3) 86 kh/rj 4/ 4