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A07158
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1742
Session of
2017
INTRODUCED BY MEHAFFIE, SOLOMON, MILLARD, MUSTIO, THOMAS, RYAN,
STURLA, LEWIS, WARD, V. BROWN, ROEBUCK, SCHLOSSBERG, NEILSON,
WATSON, DALEY, DONATUCCI AND BRADFORD, AUGUST 24, 2017
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH, AUGUST 24, 2017
AN ACT
Amending the act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), entitled "An
act to consolidate, editorially revise, and codify the public
welfare laws of the Commonwealth," in departmental powers and
duties as to supervision, providing for Keystone STARS
Program participants. in departmental powers and duties as to
supervision, further providing for definitions and providing
for Keystone STARS Program participants; and, in departmental
powers and duties as to licensing, further providing for
definitions and for fees and providing for Keystone STARS
Program participants.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of June 13, 1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known
as the Human Services Code, is amended by adding a section to
read:
Section 923. Keystone STARS Program Participants.--(a) Each
child day care provider enrolled in the Keystone STARS Program
shall:
(1) conspicuously denote on its publicly accessible Internet
website, if operational, its designated STAR-level rating,
which shall include how many STARS out of four that the child
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day care provider has received; and
(2) obtain a department-issued placard that denotes the
facility's participation in the Keystone STARS Program and
designated STAR-level rating.
(b) The department shall be responsible for issuing placards
to program enrollees. The department shall also be responsible
for designing placards in the following manner:
(1) The placards shall be clear, visible and readable by the
general public.
(2) In addition to any guidelines issued by the department
regarding the form of the placards, placards shall include the
following information:
(i) The name of the recipient facility.
(ii) The name of the agency that issued the placard.
(iii) The date the agency issued the placard.
(iv) The number of STARS out of four that the child day care
provider has received.
(v) The address, phone number, publicly accessible Internet
website and e-mail address of the agency that issued the
placard.
(c) Placards shall be posted in any public-facing window on
or adjacent to the entrance of the child day care facility.
(d) A child day care provider that fails to publicly display
its designated STAR-level rating or alters a department-issued
placard in an attempt to misrepresent the facility's STAR-level
rating may be subject to any penalties that the department deems
appropriate.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 180 days.
Section 1. The definitions of "child day care" and
"children's institutions" in section 901 of the act of June 13,
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1967 (P.L.31, No.21), known as the Human Services Code, are
amended to read:
Section 901. Definitions.--As used in this article--
"Child [day] care" means care in lieu of parental care given
for part of the twenty-four hour day to a child under sixteen
years of age, away from the child's home but does not include
child [day] care furnished in a place of worship during
religious services.
"Children's institutions" means any incorporated or
unincorporated organization, society, corporation or agency,
public or private, which may receive or care for children, or
place them in foster family homes, either at board, wages or
free; or any individual who, for hire, gain or reward, receives
for care a child, unless he is related to such child by blood or
marriage within the second degree; or any individual, not in the
regular employ of the court or of an organization, society,
association or agency, duly certified by the department, who in
any manner becomes a party to the placing of children in foster
homes, unless he is related to such children by blood or
marriage within the second degree, or is the duly appointed
guardian thereof. The term shall not include a family child care
home or child [day] care center operated for profit and subject
to the provisions of Article X.
* * *
Section 2. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
Section 923. Keystone STARS Program Participants.--(a) Each
child care provider enrolled in the Keystone STARS Program
shall:
(1) conspicuously denote on its publicly accessible Internet
website, if operational, its designated STAR-level rating,
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which shall include how many STARS out of four that the child
care provider has received;
(2) provide its STAR-level rating in writing to families at
the time of application and enrollment; and
(3) obtain a department-issued placard that denotes the
child care provider's participation in the Keystone STARS
Program and designated STAR-level rating.
(b) The department shall be responsible for issuing placards
to program participants. The department shall also be
responsible for designing placards in the following manner:
(1) The placards shall be clear, visible and readable by the
general public.
(2) In addition to any guidelines issued by the department
regarding the form of the placards, placards shall include the
following information:
(i) The name of the recipient child care provider.
(ii) The name of the department.
(iii) The date the department issued the placard.
(iv) The number of STARS out of four that the child care
provider has received.
(v) The address, phone number, publicly accessible Internet
website and e-mail address of the department.
(vi) The web address for the publicly accessible Internet
website of the department that provides information and
resources related to Keystone STARS Program.
(c) Placards shall be posted in any public-facing window on
or adjacent to the entrance of the child care provider or, if no
public-facing window exists, at the entrance of the child care
provider.
(d) A child care provider that fails to publicly display its
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designated STAR-level rating or alters a department-issued
placard in an attempt to misrepresent the provider's STAR-level
rating may be subject to any penalties that the department deems
appropriate.
(e) The department shall ensure on an annual basis that the
STARS placard is posted and accurate.
Section 3. The definitions of "child day care," "child day
care center," "facility" and "family child care home" in section
1001 of the act are amended to read:
Section 1001. Definitions.--As used in this article--
* * *
"Child [day] care" means care in lieu of parental care given
for part of the twenty-four hour day to children under sixteen
years of age, away from their own homes, but does not include
child [day] care furnished in places of worship during religious
services.
"Child [day] care center" means any premises operated for
profit in which child [day] care is provided simultaneously for
seven or more children who are not relatives of the operator,
except such centers operated under social service auspices.
* * *
"Facility" means an adult day care center, child [day] care
center, family child care home, boarding home for children,
mental health establishment, personal care home, assisted living
residence, nursing home, hospital or maternity home, as defined
herein, except to the extent that such a facility is operated by
the State or Federal governments or those supervised by the
department or licensed pursuant to the act of July 19, 1979
(P.L.130, No.48), known as the "Health Care Facilities Act."
"Family child care home" means a home where child [day] care
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is provided at any time to no less than four children and no
more than six children who are not relatives of the caregiver.
* * *
Section 4. Section 1006 of the act is amended to read:
Section 1006. Fees.--Annual licenses shall be issued when
the proper fee, if required, is received by the department and
all the other conditions prescribed in this act are met. For
personal care homes, the fee shall be an application fee. The
fees shall be:
Facility Annual Fee
Adult day care center $ 15
Mental health establishment 50
Personal care home-- 0 - 20 beds 15
-- 21 - 50 beds 20
-- 51 - 100 beds 30
--101 beds and above 50
No fee shall be required for the annual license in the case of
[day] child care centers, family child care homes, boarding
homes for children or for public or nonprofit mental
institutions.
Section 5. The act is amended by adding a section to read:
Section 1018.1. Keystone STARS Program Participants.--(a)
Each child care center and f amily child care home enrolled in
the Keystone STARS Program shall:
(1) conspicuously denote on its publicly accessible Internet
website, if operational, its designated STAR-level rating,
which shall include how many STARS out of four that the child
care center or f amily child care home has received;
(2) provide its STAR-level rating in writing to families at
the time of application and enrollment; and
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(3) obtain a department-issued placard that denotes the
child care center's or f amily child care home's participation in
the Keystone STARS Program and designated STAR-level rating.
(b) The department shall be responsible for issuing placards
to program participants. The department shall also be
responsible for designing placards in the following manner:
(1) The placards shall be clear, visible and readable by the
general public.
(2) In addition to any guidelines issued by the department
regarding the form of the placards, placards shall include the
following information:
(i) The name of the recipient child care center or f amily
child care home .
(ii) The name of the department.
(iii) The date the department issued the placard.
(iv) The number of STARS out of four that the child care
center or f amily child care home has received.
(v) The address, phone number, publicly accessible Internet
website and e-mail address of the department.
(vi) The web address for the publicly accessible Internet
website of the department that provides information and
resources related to Keystone STARS Program.
(c) Placards shall be posted in any public-facing window on
or adjacent to the entrance of the child care center or f amily
child care home or, if no public-facing window exists, at the
entrance of the child care center or f amily child care home .
(d) A child care center or f amily child care home that fails
to publicly display its designated STAR-level rating or alters a
department-issued placard in an attempt to misrepresent the
facility's STAR-level rating may be subject to any penalties
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that the department deems appropriate.
(e) The department shall ensure on an annual basis that the
STARS placard is posted and accurate.
Section 6. Section 1051 of the act is amended to read:
Section 1051. Definition.--As used in this subarticle--
"Private institution" means any of the following facilities
by whatever term known and irrespective of the age group served:
Mental hospital, institution for the mentally defective, [day]
child care center, nursing home, hospital, personal care home,
assisted living residence and other similar institution which is
operated for profit and which requires a license issued by the
department.
Section 7. This act shall take effect in 180 days.
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