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HF 2176

as introduced - 88th Legislature (2013 - 2014) Posted on 03/10/2014 03:39pm

KEY: stricken = removed, old language.
underscored = added, new language.

Bill Text Versions

Engrossments
Introduction Posted on 02/24/2014

Current Version - as introduced

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A bill for an act
relating to early childhood education; providing for Montessori early childhood
programs; amending Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 245A.03, subdivision 2;
proposing coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 124D.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

new text begin [124D.170] MONTESSORI EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Programs. new text end

new text begin (a) A program accredited by the Association Montessori
Internationale/USA to serve children ages eight weeks through age five is exempt from
licensing under chapter 245A.
new text end

new text begin (b) An accredited program under paragraph (a) may operate with approval by the
commissioner of education if the program satisfies the following requirements:
new text end

new text begin (1) the program submits a three-year plan that is approved by the commissioner in
the form and manner prescribed by the commissioner;
new text end

new text begin (2) the program provides a copy of the Association Montessori Internationale/USA
current accreditation to the commissioner;
new text end

new text begin (3) compliance with state and local fire codes under section 299F.011;
new text end

new text begin (4) compliance with Minnesota Rules, parts 9503.0065, 9503.0110, 9503.0140,
9503.0145, 9503.0150, and 9503.0155; and
new text end

new text begin (5) the program confirms that criminal background checks have been completed
for all current and prospective employees, volunteers, and contractors not under direct
supervision.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Approval process. new text end

new text begin (a) A program under subdivision 1, paragraph (a), may
not operate unless approved by the commissioner.
new text end

new text begin (b) An approved program under subdivision 1, paragraph (b), must post the
commissioner's approval letter in a conspicuous location.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Background checks. new text end

new text begin (a) The commissioner of education must request
a criminal history background check from the superintendent of the Bureau of Criminal
Apprehension on all individuals who are offered employment in a program approved
under this section. The background check request must be accompanied by:
new text end

new text begin (1) an executed criminal history consent form, including fingerprints; and
new text end

new text begin (2) a money order or cashier's check payable to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension
for the fee for conducting the criminal history background check.
new text end

new text begin (b) The superintendent of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension shall perform the
background check required under paragraph (a) by retrieving criminal history data as
defined in section 13.87, and shall also conduct a search of the national criminal records
repository. The superintendent is authorized to exchange fingerprints with the Federal
Bureau of Investigation for purposes of the criminal history check. The superintendent
shall recover the cost to the bureau of a background check through the fee charged to
the applicant under paragraph (a).
new text end

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Commissioner's right of access. new text end

new text begin To investigate questions or issues
relating to submitted plans or reports, the commissioner must be given access by programs
to the physical plant and grounds where the program is provided, documents and records,
including records maintained in electronic format, persons served by the program, and
staff whenever the program is in operation and the information is relevant to investigations
conducted by the commissioner. The commissioner must be given access without prior
notice and as often as the commissioner considers necessary if the commissioner is
investigating alleged maltreatment, conducting an inspection of compliance with the
requirements of this section, or investigating a violation of applicable laws or rules. When
conducting inspections, the commissioner may request and shall receive assistance from
other state, county, and municipal governmental agencies and departments. The approved
program provider shall allow the commissioner to photocopy, photograph, and make audio
and video tape recordings during the inspection of the program at the commissioner's
expense. The commissioner shall obtain a court order or the consent of the subject of
the records or the parents or legal guardian of the subject before photocopying hospital
medical records.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2012, section 245A.03, subdivision 2, is amended to read:


Subd. 2.

Exclusion from licensure.

(a) This chapter does not apply to:

(1) residential or nonresidential programs that are provided to a person by an
individual who is related unless the residential program is a child foster care placement
made by a local social services agency or a licensed child-placing agency, except as
provided in subdivision 2a;

(2) nonresidential programs that are provided by an unrelated individual to persons
from a single related family;

(3) residential or nonresidential programs that are provided to adults who do
not abuse chemicals or who do not have a chemical dependency, a mental illness, a
developmental disability, a functional impairment, or a physical disability;

(4) sheltered workshops or work activity programs that are certified by the
commissioner of employment and economic development;

(5) programs operated by a public school for children 33 months or older;

(6) nonresidential programs primarily for children that provide care or supervision
for periods of less than three hours a day while the child's parent or legal guardian is in
the same building as the nonresidential program or present within another building that is
directly contiguous to the building in which the nonresidential program is located;

(7) nursing homes or hospitals licensed by the commissioner of health except as
specified under section 245A.02;

(8) board and lodge facilities licensed by the commissioner of health that do not
provide children's residential services under Minnesota Rules, chapter 2960, mental health
or chemical dependency treatment;

(9) homes providing programs for persons placed by a county or a licensed agency
for legal adoption, unless the adoption is not completed within two years;

(10) programs licensed by the commissioner of corrections;

(11) recreation programs for children or adults that are operated or approved by a park
and recreation board whose primary purpose is to provide social and recreational activities;

(12) programs operated by a school as defined in section 120A.22, subdivision 4;
YMCA as defined in section 315.44; YWCA as defined in section 315.44; or JCC as
defined in section 315.51, whose primary purpose is to provide child care or services to
school-age children;

(13) Head Start nonresidential programs which operate for less than 45 days in
each calendar year;

(14) noncertified boarding care homes unless they provide services for five or more
persons whose primary diagnosis is mental illness or a developmental disability;

(15) programs for children such as scouting, boys clubs, girls clubs, and sports and
art programs, and nonresidential programs for children provided for a cumulative total of
less than 30 days in any 12-month period;

(16) residential programs for persons with mental illness, that are located in hospitals;

(17) the religious instruction of school-age children; Sabbath or Sunday schools; or
the congregate care of children by a church, congregation, or religious society during the
period used by the church, congregation, or religious society for its regular worship;

(18) camps licensed by the commissioner of health under Minnesota Rules, chapter
4630;

(19) mental health outpatient services for adults with mental illness or children
with emotional disturbance;

(20) residential programs serving school-age children whose sole purpose is cultural
or educational exchange, until the commissioner adopts appropriate rules;

(21) community support services programs as defined in section 245.462, subdivision
6
, and family community support services as defined in section 245.4871, subdivision 17;

(22) the placement of a child by a birth parent or legal guardian in a preadoptive
home for purposes of adoption as authorized by section 259.47;

(23) settings registered under chapter 144D which provide home care services
licensed by the commissioner of health to fewer than seven adults;

(24) chemical dependency or substance abuse treatment activities of licensed
professionals in private practice as defined in Minnesota Rules, part 9530.6405, subpart
15, when the treatment activities are not paid for by the consolidated chemical dependency
treatment fund;

(25) consumer-directed community support service funded under the Medicaid
waiver for persons with developmental disabilities when the individual who provided
the service is:

(i) the same individual who is the direct payee of these specific waiver funds or paid
by a fiscal agent, fiscal intermediary, or employer of record; and

(ii) not otherwise under the control of a residential or nonresidential program that is
required to be licensed under this chapter when providing the service; or

(26) a program serving only children who are age 33 months or older, that is
operated by a nonpublic school, for no more than four hours per day per child, with no
more than 20 children at any one time, and that is accredited by:

(i) an accrediting agency that is formally recognized by the commissioner of
education as a nonpublic school accrediting organization; or

(ii) an accrediting agency that requires background studies and that receives and
investigates complaints about the services providednew text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (27) a Montessori early childhood program that is approved by the commissioner of
education under section 124D.170
new text end .

A program that asserts its exemption from licensure under item (ii) shall, upon
request from the commissioner, provide the commissioner with documentation from the
accrediting agency that verifies: that the accreditation is current; that the accrediting
agency investigates complaints about services; and that the accrediting agency's standards
require background studies on all people providing direct contact services.

(b) For purposes of paragraph (a), clause (6), a building is directly contiguous to a
building in which a nonresidential program is located if it shares a common wall with the
building in which the nonresidential program is located or is attached to that building by
skyway, tunnel, atrium, or common roof.

(c) Except for the home and community-based services identified in section
245D.03, subdivision 1, nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require licensure for
any services provided and funded according to an approved federal waiver plan where
licensure is specifically identified as not being a condition for the services and funding.