                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

CHILD DAY CENTER OPERATED BY RELIGIOUS INSTITUTION EXEMPT FROM LICENSURE; ANNUAL
STATEMENT AND DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE REQUIRED; ENFORCEMENT; INJUNCTIVE RELIEF (§
22.1-289.031)

A. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, a child day center,
including a child day center operated or conducted under the auspices of a
religious institution, shall be exempt from the licensure requirements of this
chapter, but shall comply with the provisions of this section unless it chooses
to be licensed. If such religious institution chooses not to be licensed, it
shall file with the Superintendent, prior to beginning operation of a child day
center and thereafter annually, a statement of intent to operate a child day
center, certification that the child day center has disclosed in writing to the
parents or guardians of the children in the center the fact that it is exempt
from licensure and has posted the fact that it is exempt from licensure in a
visible location on the premises, the qualifications of the personnel employed
therein, and documentary evidence that:

   1. Such religious institution has tax exempt status as a nonprofit religious
   institution in accordance with &#xA7; 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of
   1954, as amended, or that the real property owned and exclusively occupied by
   the religious institution is exempt from local taxation.

   2. Within the prior 90 days for the initial exemption and within the prior 180
   days for exemptions thereafter, the local health department and local fire
   marshal or Office of the State Fire Marshal, whichever is appropriate, have
   inspected the physical facilities of the child day center and have determined
   that the center is in compliance with applicable laws and regulations with
   regard to food service activities, health and sanitation, water supply,
   building codes, and the Statewide Fire Prevention Code or the Uniform
   Statewide Building Code.

   3. The child day center employs supervisory personnel according to the
   following ratio of staff to children:
   				a. One staff member to four children from ages zero to 16 months.
   				b. One staff member to five children from ages 16 months to 24 months.
   				c. One staff member to eight children from ages 24 months to 36 months.
   				d. One staff member to 10 children from ages 36 months to five years.
   				e. One staff member to 20 children from ages five years to nine years.
   				f. One staff member to 25 children from ages nine years to 12 years.
   				Staff shall be counted in the required staff-to-children ratios only when
   they are directly supervising children. When a group of children receiving
   care includes children from different age brackets, the age of the youngest
   child in the group shall be used to determine the staff-to-children ratio that
   applies to that group. For each group of children receiving care, at least one
   adult staff member shall be regularly present. However, during designated
   daily rest periods and designated sleep periods of evening and overnight care
   programs, for children ages 16 months to six years, only one staff member
   shall be required to be present with the children under supervision. In such
   cases, at least one staff member shall be physically present in the same space
   as the children under supervision at all times. Other staff members counted
   for purposes of the staff-to-child ratio need not be physically present in the
   same space as the resting or sleeping children, but shall be present on the
   same floor as the resting or sleeping children and shall have no barrier to
   their immediate access to the resting or sleeping children. The staff member
   who is physically present in the same space as the sleeping children shall be
   able to summon additional staff counted in the staff-to-child ratio without
   leaving the space in which the resting or sleeping children are located.
   				Staff members shall be at least 16 years of age. Staff members under 18
   years of age shall be under the supervision of an adult staff member. Adult
   staff members shall supervise no more than two staff members under 18 years of
   age at any given time.

   4. Each person in a supervisory position has been certified by a practicing
   physician or physician assistant to be free from any disability which would
   prevent him from caring for children under his supervision.

   5. The center is in compliance with the requirements of:
   				a. This section.
   				b. Section 22.1-289.039 relating to background checks.
   				c. Section 63.2-1509 relating to the reporting of suspected cases of child
   abuse and neglect.
   				d. Chapter 3 (&#xA7; 46.2-300 et seq.) of Title 46.2 regarding a valid
   Virginia driver&#8217;s license or commercial driver&#8217;s license; Article
   21 (&#xA7; 46.2-1157 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of Title 46.2, regarding vehicle
   inspections; ensuring that any vehicle used to transport children is an
   insured motor vehicle as defined in &#xA7; 46.2-705; and Article 13 (&#xA7;
   46.2-1095 et seq.) of Chapter 10 of Title 46.2, regarding child restraint
   devices.

   6. The following aspects of the child day center&#8217;s operations are
   described in a written statement provided to the parents or guardians of the
   children in the center and made available to the general public: physical
   facilities, enrollment capacity, food services, health requirements for the
   staff, and public liability insurance.

   7. The individual seeking to operate the child day center is not currently
   ineligible to operate another child day program due to a suspension or
   revocation of his license or license exemption for reasons involving child
   safety or any criminal conviction, including fraud, related to such child day
   program.

   8. A person trained and certified in first aid and cardiopulmonary
   resuscitation (CPR) will be present at the child day center whenever children
   are present or at any other location in which children attending the child day
   center are present.

   9. The child day center is in compliance with all safe sleep guidelines
   recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

B. The center shall establish and implement procedures for:

   1. Hand washing by staff and children before eating and after toileting and
   diapering.

   2. Appropriate supervision of all children in care, including daily intake and
   dismissal procedures to ensure safety of children.

   3. A daily simple health screening and exclusion of sick children by a person
   trained to perform such screenings.

   4. Ensuring that all children in the center are in compliance with the
   provisions of &#xA7; 32.1-46 regarding the immunization of children against
   certain diseases.

   5. Ensuring that all areas of the premises accessible to children are free of
   obvious injury hazards, including providing and maintaining sand or other
   cushioning material under playground equipment.

   6. Ensuring that all staff are able to recognize the signs of child abuse and
   neglect.

   7. Ensuring that all incidents involving serious physical injury to or death
   of children attending the child day center are reported to the Superintendent.
   Reports of serious physical injuries, which shall include any physical
   injuries that require an emergency referral to an offsite health care
   professional or treatment in a hospital, shall be submitted annually. Reports
   of deaths shall be submitted no later than one business day after the death
   occurred.

C. The Superintendent may perform on-site inspections of religious institutions
to confirm compliance with the provisions of this section and to investigate
complaints that the religious institution is not in compliance with the
provisions of this section. The Superintendent may revoke the exemption for any
child day center in serious or persistent violation of the requirements of this
section. If a religious institution operates a child day center and does not
file the statement and documentary evidence required by this section, the
Superintendent shall give reasonable notice to such religious institution of the
nature of its noncompliance and may thereafter take such action as he determines
appropriate, including a suit to enjoin the operation of the child day center.

D. Any person who has reason to believe that a child day center falling within
the provisions of this section is not in compliance with the requirements of
this section may report the same to the Department, the local health department,
or the local fire marshal, each of which may inspect the child day center for
noncompliance, give reasonable notice to the religious institution, and
thereafter may take appropriate action as provided by law, including a suit to
enjoin the operation of the child day center.

E. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a child day center operated by or
conducted under the auspices of a religious institution from obtaining a license
pursuant to this chapter.

HISTORY: 2020, cc. 494, 495, 860, 861.