HB 239 Re-referred to House Labor Health and Social Services Committee

Protect Our Children While Families Work!

 HB239 has been re-referred to the House Labor Health and Social Services Committee, and will be debated in committee upon adjournment tomorrow, Wednesday February 2nd. For more information, please visit here: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/Legis=latorSummary/CommitteeMembers.aspxstrCommitteeID=10&Year=2010 or here: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2011/Introduced/HB0253.pdf.

The Wyoming Women's Foundation is concerned about House Bill 239's dissolution of the certification process for in-home providers that choose not to receive state or federal funding.  If this bill becomes law, providers who choose to operate unlicensed would not have central registry background checks or criminal history background checks.  Knowing your children are safe and healthy while you are at work increases productivity, reduces employee turnover, absenteeism and tardiness.[i]  Thankfully, some mothers go to work knowing that their children are at least in a safe environment, but House Bill 239 deflates working parent's ability to rest assured that their children are safe while they fight to make ends meet.  Protecting our children so that families can thrive is good for business and good for families.

Wyoming women and families struggle to make ends meet with both parents in 67% of families with children under the age of six working.[ii]  In Wyoming, there is no requirement that children be provided a quality child care environment.  However, thanks to the hard work of many legislators during the 2007 session, children's very basic health and safety needs are currently met while parents are working.  This bill, HB 239, does away with that for at home providers who choose not to apply for certification.

Please keep the current safety standards in place, and over time, consider making much-needed improvements to child care in Wyoming.  HB 239 is a step backward for Wyoming's workers, businesses, families, and children.  Let's move forward.

Further information on HB 239 can be found here: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2011/billindex/BillCrossRef.aspx?type=ALL

[i] Economic Opportunity Institute. (2002).  How does high quality child cre benefit business and the local economy?

[ii] United States Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). State Profile-Wyoming