(Photo: Maya Mitchell/New Hampshire Bulletin)
An Ohio House committee approved multiple child care bills on Monday. Three of them concern increasing children’s access to facilities, and the third is a response to calls for increased vigilance in connection with potential fraud in child care.
The Ohio House of Representatives’ Children and Human Services Committee conducted its own version of a-rama voting, passing four bills in quick succession.
Ohio House Bill 647, one of two bills aimed at strengthening the state’s child care fraud investigation system, passed after multiple hearings and amendments to the bill.
Both child care fraud bills faced criticism due to separate issues from child care providers and local prosecutors throughout the committee consideration process.
The national scrutiny of child care facilities comes after claims by a right-wing influencer that child care facilities in Minnesota, especially those run by Somali immigrants, are abusing federal funds.
The Trump administration temporarily froze funds for Minnesota and other Democratic-led cities, questioning the legality of using the funds at some facilities.
Although Ohio was not the target, Governor Mike DeWine and Kara Wentehead of Ohio’s Department of Children and Youth Services, has tried to get ahead of concerns by spearheading oversight of child care providers in the state, especially those that receive federal funds for publicly funded child care.
HB 647 was created as part of the defense of the state system, a GOP-led effort add investigative layers to the system through the Ohio Office of the Attorney General and the Ohio Office of Inspector General, and establish other regulations within the system.
The act gained the support of Wenty, who stated that the provisions contained in it were already the goals of the department.
The commission also moved Ohio House of Representatives Bill 7, Ohio House Bill 484AND Ohio Senate Bill 218together with a vote of the entire House, which could take place before the summer parliamentary break.
The co-sponsor is the committee chairman, state Rep. Andrea White, R-Kettering HB 7that would guarantee publicly funded childcare for people caring for foster children and family members such as grandchildren or siblings.
The bill requires caregivers to have a job and participate in an education or other training program to qualify for publicly funded child care.
HB 484 is also a Republican-led bill that would create a novel pilot program specifically for child care workers.
Under the bill, the Ohio Department of Children and Youth Services would establish the Workforce Investment Now for Child Care program and provide publicly funded child care to children of child care workers, regardless of household income.
According to an analysis by the Legislative Service Commission, the bill provides exceptions for employees and administrators of child care centers and owners of child care facilities.
The Department of Children and Youth Affairs will be required to produce a report on the findings of the pilot program within six months of the end of the program. The bill allocated $20 million for the program.
This isn’t the first pilot program the Legislature has sent out related to child care. The cost-sharing pilot program became part of the state’s most recent operating budget, which allocated state funds to launch a program that would divide child care costs between the state, employers and eligible employees.
The Ohio Department of Children and Youth Services also administers this program.
Ohio Senate Bill 218 is addressed to a very specific population of children: those whose parents serve in the armed forces.
To avoid duplication of regulations, the bill exempts family child care facilities that have already been certified by any military unit from state licensing requirements.
“Passing Senate Bill 218 would add Ohio to the growing list of states seeking to expand access to high-quality child care for military families and reduce barriers for military spouses who support their families by operating family child care homes and often moving between states with different licensing requirements,” sponsoring state Sen. Kristina Roegner, R-Hudson, said during the bill’s first hearing on Monday.
Children’s rights group Groundwork Ohio also supported the bill, according to the group’s vice president, Brittany Boulton.
“By aligning state policies with existing federal oversight… this bill offers a practical solution that supports military families and the providers who serve them without compromising accountability or quality,” Boulton told the committee.
The House reviewed a companion bill written in similar language, and White stated that the committee had “substantially read the bill” and moved to pass SB 218.
“I understand there is broad support for this bill,” White said before its unanimous passage.
All bills passed Monday will now go to the Ohio House for a full vote.
Bills prepared by the House of Representatives will have to pass the Ohio Senate before being signed by the governor.
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