New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
Title 18 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
Chapter II - Regulations of the Department of Social Services
Subchapter C - Social Services
Article 2 - Family and Children's Services
Part 416 - Group Family Day Care Homes
Section 416.15 - Management and administration
Universal Citation: 18 NY Comp Codes Rules and Regs ยง 416.15
Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) General licensing requirements.
(1) Obtain a license and operate in
compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
(i) Each group family day care home must
obtain a license from the office. No person or entity may operate a group
family day care home without a license from the office.
(ii) Each group family day care home must
operate in compliance with the regulations of the office and all other
applicable laws and regulations.
(iii) Each group family day care home must
operate in compliance with all emergency health guidance promulgated by the
Department of Health in the interest of public health during a designated
public health emergency. Provided that, during a designated public health
emergency, any relevant emergency directives from the executive chamber or from
the Department of Health shall supersede regulations of the Office in the case
of any conflict.
(2) Each
group family day care home which has been issued a license by the office must
openly display such license and all waivers, limitations and restrictions in
the home for which it was issued.
(i) The
program must post or display conspicuously in a place to which parents have
free and daily access, a copy of the most recent compliance history report
immediately after it is issued to the program by the office.
(3) A new application for a
license must be submitted to the office when there is a change in the address,
or change in the provider of an entity-owned child care program, or when a
license is sought following the office's revocation of, or denial of a
license.
(4) Under no circumstances
will a group family day care licensee or family day care registrant be
permitted to hold more than one group family day care license or a family day
care registration simultaneously. However, nothing contained herein shall
prohibit the continued operations of programs already licensed or registered
prior to the effective date of these regulations, unless the license or
registration of the home is revoked, terminated or suspended pursuant to the
procedures set forth in section
413.3
of this Title.
(5) When the group
family child day care licensee is an individual, that person must be the
provider, as defined in section
413.2(c)(12)
of this Title. However, nothing contained herein shall prohibit the continued
operation of programs already licensed or registered, where a person other than
the licensee has been named as the provider, where the program was licensed or
registered prior to the effective date of these regulations, unless the license
or registration of the home is revoked, terminated or suspended pursuant to the
procedures set forth in section
413.3
of this Title.
(6) When the group
family child care licensee is an entity other than an individual, the person
named as the provider, as defined in section
413.2(c)(12)
of this Title must be a person with a business interest, as defined in section
413.2(d)(19)
of this Title, of at least 51 percent share of ownership in the entity.
However, nothing contained herein shall prohibit the continued operation of
programs already licensed or registered prior to May 1, 2014, where a person
other than a person with a business interest in the entity has been named as
the provider, unless the license or registration of the home is revoked,
terminated or suspended pursuant to the procedures set forth in section
413.3
of this Title.
(7) Under no
circumstances may there be more than one licensed or registered child day care
program in any one dwelling unit in a personal residence. However, nothing
contained herein shall prohibit the continued operation of more than one
licensed or registered family or group family day care home in a personal
residence where all such homes in the personal residence were licensed or
registered prior to March 1, 2002, unless the license or registration of the
home is revoked, terminated or suspended pursuant to the procedures set forth
in section
413.3
of this Title.
(8) In a personal
residence where more than one licensed or registered family or group family day
care home was located prior to March 1, 2002, the maximum capacity of all
licensed and registered family and group family day care homes in the residence
shall not under any circumstances exceed 20 children in total, including
school-age children who receive care for only part of the day, and no
individual group family day care home located in such a residence may have a
maximum capacity of more than 10 children, including school-age children who
receive care for only part of the day. Each such licensed and registered family
and group family day care home must be operated as a separate facility and must
have separate emergency exits sufficient to meet the requirements of section
416.4
or
417.4
of this Title, as appropriate.
(9)
The provisions specified on the license are binding and the group family day
care home must operate in compliance with the terms of the license. The number
and age range of children specified thereon are the maximum number and age
range of children who may be in the care of the group family day care home at
any one time.
(10) No license will
be issued unless the licensee is in full compliance with the regulations of the
office and all other applicable laws and regulations except where a waiver of
one or more requirements of this Part has been approved in writing by the
office in accordance with section
413.6 of this
Title.
(11) The effective period of
the license for a group family day care home will be up to four years so long
as the licensee remains in compliance with applicable laws and regulations
during such periods.
(12) A license
is not transferable to any other person, entity or location.
(13) Group family day care homes required to
be licensed with the office will not be exempt from this requirement through
registration with another state agency or certification, registration or
licensure by any local governmental agency or authorized agency.
(14) Before denial of an application for
licensure or renewal of licensure, the licensee is entitled to a hearing before
the office pursuant to section
413.5 of this
Title.
(b) General operation requirements.
(1) Individual
children must be cared for less than 24 hours a day. No caregiver may work more
than two consecutive shifts.
(2)
The licensee must make a written request to the office before providing an
additional shift of care beyond what was specified and approved in the initial
application.
(3) The licensee
cannot provide an additional shift of care until the changes have been approved
in writing by the office.
(4) The
caregivers, employees, volunteers and all members of the household must be in
good health and be of good character and habits.
(5) Submission of fraudulent documents to the
office or its representatives is prohibited.
(6) Confidentiality.
(i) Information relating to an individual
child is confidential and cannot be disclosed without written parental
permission to anyone other than the office, its designees or other persons
authorized by law.
(ii) Information
relating to an individual child may be disclosed to a social services district
where the child receives a day care subsidy from the district, where the child
has been named in a report of alleged child abuse or maltreatment, or as
otherwise authorized by law.
(iii)
Redisclosure of confidential HIV-related information, as defined in section
360-8.1
of this Title, concerning a child receiving group family day care is not
permitted except in a manner consistent with Article 27-F of the Public Health
Law.
(7) A group family
day care home may not refuse to admit a child to the home solely because the
child is a child with a developmental delay or disability or has been diagnosed
as having human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), HIV-related illness or acquired
immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Each such child must be evaluated by the
program to determine whether the child could be accommodated in the program if
reasonable modifications are made to the premises and/or program. Nothing
contained in section
416.11
of this Part, shall be deemed to require the program to incur significant
additional expenses to modify the premises and/or program to accommodate such a
child.
(8) The parent of any child
receiving group family day care must have:
(i) unlimited and on demand access to such
child;
(ii) the right to inspect
all parts of the home used for child day care or which could present a hazard
to the health or safety of the child whenever the parent requests at any time
during the hours of operation of the home;
(iii) unlimited and on demand access to the
caregivers whenever such child is in care or during the normal hours of
operation; and
(iv) unlimited and
on demand access to written records concerning such child except where access
to such records is otherwise restricted by law.
(9) Electronic monitors and surveillance
equipment.
(i) The parents of all children
receiving care in a group family day care home equipped with electronic
monitoring devices or surveillance cameras installed for the purpose of
allowing parents to view their children in the day care setting by means of the
internet must be informed that cameras will be used for this purpose. All
assistants and employees of the group family day care home must also be
informed if electronic monitoring devices or surveillance cameras will be used
for this purpose.
(ii) All parents
of children enrolled in the group family day care home and all assistants and
employees of the group family day care home must be made aware of the locations
of all electronic monitoring devices or surveillance cameras used at the group
family day care home.
(iii) Group
family day care homes opting to install and use electronic monitoring devices
or surveillance cameras must comply with all State and Federal laws applicable
to the use of such equipment.
(iv)
Electronic monitoring devices and surveillance cameras may not be used as a
substitute for competent direct supervision of children.
(v) Electronic monitoring devices or
surveillance cameras are permitted to transmit images of children in common
rooms, hallways and play areas only. Bathrooms and changing areas must remain
private and free of all electronic monitoring devices and surveillance
cameras.
(vi) Group family day care
homes that use electronic monitoring devices or surveillance cameras must allow
inspectors and other representatives of the office to have access to such
equipment and to have viewing privileges as required by the office.
(vii) Parents of children, caregivers,
employees and volunteers must be notified when electronic monitoring devices or
surveillance cameras are used.
(viii) Group family day care homes opting to
allow parents to view their children in the day care setting by means of the
internet or other electronic means must use and maintain adequate security
measures at all times. Such measures include but are not limited to: frequent
changes of passwords; filtering measures that prohibit public access to or
viewing of day care activities via the internet or other electronic means; and
immediate corrective action in response to any report of abuse of the system or
inappropriate access. Group family day care homes must also advise the parents
having access to views of the day care home through the internet or other
electronic means of the importance of security in regard to such viewing and of
the importance of the privacy rights of other children who may be
viewed.
(10) Inspectors,
representatives of the office and Child Protective Services.
(i) A group family day care home must admit
inspectors and other representatives of the office onto the grounds and
premises at any time during the hours of operation as documented with the
office on the application for group family day care. Such inspectors and
representatives must be given free access to the building, the caregivers,
employees and volunteers, the children and any program records.
(ii) A group family day care home must
cooperate with inspectors and other representatives of the office in regard to
any inspections or investigations that are conducted by the office or its
representatives.
(iii) A group
family day care home also must cooperate with local Child Protective Services
staff conducting any investigation of alleged child abuse or
maltreatment.
(iv) No provider,
caregiver, employee, volunteer or household member may place or attempt to
place an office representative, who is performing his/her role as such, in
reasonable fear of physical injury.
(v) Any intentional display of physical or
verbal force, which would give an office representative reason to fear or
expect bodily harm, is prohibited.
(vi) Intentional and wrongful physical
contact with an office representative is prohibited.
(11) In hiring caregivers subsequent to
issuance of a license, a program:
(i) must
notify the office immediately in writing when there is any change of
caregivers;
(ii) must submit to the
office, prior to the start date, the name of any new caregiver and the
supporting documentation needed to complete the approval process, including:
(a) the forms necessary for the office to
inquire whether the applicant is the subject of an indicated report of child
abuse or maltreatment on file with the Statewide Central Register of Child
Abuse and Maltreatment;
(b) the
forms necessary to check the register of substantiated category one cases of
abuse or neglect maintained by the Justice Center for the Protection of Persons
with Special Needs pursuant to section 495 of the Social Services Law;
(c) fingerprint images necessary for the
office to conduct a criminal history review;
(d) a sworn statement indicating whether, to
the best of the applicant's knowledge, he or she has ever been convicted of a
misdemeanor or felony in New York State or any other jurisdiction;
and
(e) two acceptable
references;
(iii) must
ensure that a medical statement has been submitted before the person has any
involvement with children in care, as required in section
416.11
of this Part;
(iv) may, during the
office's review of all documentation for any proposed caregiver, continue to
operate a group family day care home with any individual who is identified on
the list required by paragraph (c)(12) of this section;
(v) may not leave the proposed caregiver in
sole charge of, or unsupervised with, children until the office approves the
caregiver;
(vi) any change in email
address for the provider or other designee when such change becomes effective;
and
(vii) any change to contact
information when such changes become effective.
(12) The group family day care home must
report to the office: any change affecting, or which reasonably might be
expected to affect, those portions of the building and property in which the
program is operating or which are used for the children's egress in the case of
emergency; any change in household members; and any other change that would
place the home out of compliance with applicable regulations.
(13) The caregivers, employees and volunteers
must be familiar with the regulations governing group family day care. Such
regulations must be readily accessible to the caregivers for reference purposes
and must be made available for review to a parent of a child in care upon
request by a parent.
(14) The
caregiver must immediately notify the parent and office upon learning of the
following events involving a child which occurred while the child was in care
at the program or was being transported by a caregiver:
(i) death;
(ii) serious incident;
(iii) serious injury;
(iv) serious condition;
(v) communicable disease;
(vi) transportation to a hospital.
(15) Parents must be given the
opportunity to discuss issues related to their children and care of their
children with the caregivers. Such opportunities must occur at the time of
enrollment of the child in the program and as frequently as needed thereafter,
but at least annually.
(16) The
indoor and outdoor areas of the home where the children are being cared for
must not be used for any other business or social purpose or non-daycare
activity when children are present, such that the attention of the caregivers
is diverted from the care of the children.
(17) When a program proposes to care for a
child under the age of six weeks, prior approval must be obtained from the
office. In seeking such approval, the program must furnish, in writing, the
following:
(i) identifying information
related to the specific child who would receive care, including the parents
name and address, and the child's name, gender and age;
(ii) the extenuating circumstance
necessitating the care; and
(iii) a
description of what the program will do to achieve consistency with the
office's guidelines for the care of children under the age of six
weeks.
(18) Fire and
police notifications.
(i) Within five days
after receiving the initial license and before actually commencing operation,
the program must, using a form specified by the office or an approved
equivalent for that purpose, notify the local police and fire departments of
the municipality within which the group family day care home is located of the
following:
(a) the address of the group
family day care home;
(b) the
maximum capacity of the group family day care home;
(c) the age range of children that will be in
care; and
(d) the hours during
which children will be in care.
(ii) If the local municipality does not have
a police or fire department, the sheriff of the county within which the group
family day care home is located must be notified instead. The program must
notify the local police and fire departments or the county sheriff, as
appropriate, if there is any change in any of the information required to be
provided pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph.
(19) Within five days of a household member
turning 18 years of age or a person 18 years of age or older beginning to live
in the residence, the program must:
(i)
submit the State Central Register of Child Abuse And Maltreatment database
check forms necessary to complete required screening by the Statewide Central
Register of Child Abuse and Maltreatment to determine if the person is the
subject of an indicated report of child abuse or maltreatment; and
(ii) submit the forms necessary to check the
register of substantiated category one cases of abuse or neglect maintained by
the Justice Center for the Protection of Persons with Special Needs pursuant to
section 495 of the Social Services Law;
and
(iii) submit the necessary
fingerprint image necessary to complete the criminal history review required
pursuant to section
413.4 of
this Title.
(20) No
person other than a caregiver may have unsupervised contact with a child in
care at the program.
(21) All group
family day care homes that accept direct or indirect payments from a social
services district or a payment from a parent or caretaker for providing
subsidized child care must comply with all relevant requirements of the child
care subsidy program and Part 415 of this Title.
(22) The program must give the parent, at the
time of admission of the child, a written policy statement including but not
limited to:
(i) the responsibilities of the
program;
(ii) the responsibilities
of the parent;
(iii) the policies
of the program regarding admission and disenrollment policies;
(iv) how parents will be notified of
accidents, serious incidents and injuries;
(v) the plan for behavior
management;
(vi) the evacuation
plan;
(vii) the program
activities;
(viii) a summary of the
program's health policies, to include the level of illnesses the program will
accommodate;
(ix) actions the
program will take in the event a child is not picked up as scheduled;
(x) meal arrangements;
(xi) instructional materials on the available
procedures if they suspect their child has been abused or maltreated;
(xii) how to access the
regulations;
(xiii) contact
information for the office including the Child Care Complaint Line;
(xiv) transportation policy; and
(xv) as applicable, written notification that
there is a firearm, shotgun, rifle or ammunition on the premises.
(23) Applicants and existing
programs are required to notify the office within 15 days if the day care home
becomes licensed, registered, or certified with the office or any other agency
to provide any type of care to children or adults.
(24) Child day care programs must keep all
records relevant to the current licensing period, and the immediately preceding
licensing period.
(25) Mid-point
requirements for four-year license holders. At the two-year calendar date in a
four year licensing cycle, a program must be in compliance with the following
mid-point requirements and be able to show proof of compliance to the office
when requested:
(i) where a program uses a
private water supply, a report from a state licensed laboratory or individual,
based on tests performed within the 12 months preceding the calendar date of
the two-year mark in a four year license, showing that the water meets
standards for drinking water established by the New York State Department of
Health;
(ii) a report of inspection
and approval performed by local authorities or an inspector qualified to
approve fuel burning systems within the 12 months preceding the calendar date
of the two-year mark in a four year license of any wood or coal burning stove,
fireplace, pellet stoves or permanently installed gas space heater in use at
the home; and
(iii) proof of
compliance with the training requirements of section
416.14 of
this Part.
(26) Programs
must follow safety plans developed by the office when allegations of risk of
harm to child(ren) against the program, caregiver, staff, household member,
volunteer or visitor are under investigation.
(c) The program must maintain on file at the group family day care home, available for inspection by the office or its designees at any time, the following records in a current and accurate manner:
(1) a copy of the evacuation plan, evacuation
drills, and shelter-in-place drills conducted, on forms furnished by the office
or approved equivalents, as required in sections
416.4
and
416.5 of this
Part;
(2) an approved health care
plan on forms furnished by the office, as required in section
416.11
of this Part;
(3) the name,
address, gender, and date of birth of each child and each child's parents
names, addresses, telephone numbers and place(s) at which parents or other
persons responsible for the child can be reached in case of an
emergency;
(4) the names and
addresses of persons authorized to take the child(ren) from the group family
day care home;
(5) daily attendance
records that are filled out at the time a child arrives and departs, and must
include arrival and departure times;
(6) children's individual health care plans;
parental consents for emergency medical treatment; child's medical statement,
immunizations, and any available results of lead screening for children not yet
enrolled in kindergarten or a higher grade only; the name and dosage of any
medications used by a child, the frequency of administration of such
medications, and a record of their administration by caregivers; daily health
check documentation; a record of illnesses and injuries occurring while in
care; and any indicators of child abuse or maltreatment;
(7) medical statements for the provider,
assistant(s), and substitute(s) completed, as required in section
416.11
of this Part;
(8) a medical
statement regarding the health of all persons residing in the group family day
care home, as required in section
416.11
of this Part;
(9) a plan of program
activities, as required in section
416.7 of
this Part;
(10) a report of
inspection and approval performed within the 12 months preceding the date of
the application for licensure or renewal by a qualified person of wood or coal
burning stove, fireplace, pellet stoves or permanently installed gas space
heater in use at the home;
(11)
where a program uses a private water supply:
(i) a report from a State-licensed laboratory
or individual, based on tests performed within the 12 months preceding the date
of application and every two years thereafter, showing that the water meets
standards for drinking water established by the New York State Department of
Health; or
(ii) if the water does
not meet such standards, a description of how water for all purposes will be
provided by another method acceptable to the Department of Health;
(12) a list of assistants and
substitutes who are available and approved to care for the children in the
group family day care home when the provider or assistant must be
absent;
(13) a daily schedule
documenting the arrival and departure times of each caregiver, employees and
volunteers;
(14) documentation of
training sessions attended in accordance with section
416.14 of
this Part;
(15) when the group
family day care license is issued to an entity, other than a sole
proprietorship, the following additional documentation is required:
(i) a copy of the certificate of
incorporation, partnership agreement, or articles of organization and any
amendments thereto;
(ii)
verification of filing of the certificate of incorporation, partnership
agreement or Articles of organization and any amendments thereto with the
Secretary of State; and
(iii) a
current list of the names of the board of directors, partners, or members and
their addresses, telephone numbers of the current principal officers and
members, and the business and civic qualifications of all such
individuals;
(16) a copy
of the notification form provided to the local police and fire departments or
the county sheriff as required in paragraph (b)(18) of this section;
(17) a completed environmental hazards form
provided by the office stating that the residence and the surrounding
neighborhood and environment are free from environmental hazards, as required
in section
416.2(a)(13)
and (d)(4) of this Part;
(18) the napping agreement for each child in
care;
(19) the transportation
policy and written parental permission for the transportation of each child in
care;
(20) a pool maintenance
safety plan;
(21) a current
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and first aid certificate as required in section
416.11
and
416.14 of
this Part;
(22) if appropriate,
written permission from a parent to allow a school age child to participate in
activities outside the direct supervision of the caregiver and visually checked
every 15 minutes;
(23) all records
relevant to the current licensing period, and the immediately preceding
licensing period; and
(24) a copy
of the notification form provided to the parents as required in section
416.5(x)
of this Part.
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