House Passes Bill to Create ‘Certified Child Care Communities’

UPDATED: Strengthening the workforce by expanding access to child care continues to be a push in the Kentucky General Assembly, as House Bill 561 passed the House with a vote of 77-14 Tuesday to create certified child care communities in the Commonwealth.

Sponsored by Rep. Samara Heavrin, House Bill 561 would encourage collaboration between local governments, area development districts, and other community stakeholders to obtain the specific designation of a “certified child care community.” 

In the House Families and Children Committee meeting last week, Heavrin said she spent a significant amount of time working on ways to improve and expand child care over the interim, and mentioned a survey that identified local zoning as one of the biggest barriers to opening new child care centers in Kentucky.

“This bill encourages – it’s not a mandate – but it encourages local governments to look at their zoning ordinances to make sure there is not any regulation preventing child care centers from opening in their local counties or cities,” Heavrin said.

Also testifying with Heavrin in committee was Charles Aull, Executive Director of the Center for Policy and Research at the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, who spoke to the collaborative nature of House Bill 561.

“One of the things that the President and CEO of the Kentucky Chamber, Ashli Watts, likes to say is that the superpower of the Chamber is our ability to convene and bring people together,” Aull said. “And that’s one of the roles we played in this legislation.”

“We worked with local government organizations like KACo, KLC, the Council of Area Development Districts. We also talked with a lot of childcare providers and early childhood education advocates to try and thread a needle on something that made a lot of sense. The consensus was to bring some reforms to local land use rules and zoning regulations, while also fully preserving local control, local autonomy, and the ability of local governments to determine their own rules,” Aull said.

Aull also mentioned House Bill 7 from 2021, a law establishing “recovery ready communities”, as inspiration for House Bill 561.

“By obtaining the certified child care community designation, local governments can send a strong message to working families that they prioritize kids and quality child care and to employers that they are serious about solving workforce challenges,” Aull added.

House Bill 561 now heads to the Senate for consideration in committee.

Watch an interview with Rep. Heavrin on this bill and other pieces of legislation here.

Stay tuned to The Bottom Line for more updates.