2026 Minnesota Statutes

142H.17 DROP-IN CHILD CARE PROGRAMS.

Subdivision 1.Drop-in child care programs.

If a license holder chooses to operate as a drop-in child care program, the license holder must comply with the requirements in this section.

Subd. 2.Exemptions.

(a) Drop-in child care programs that meet one of the requirements in paragraph (b) are exempt from:

(1) section 142H.10;

(2) section 142H.11, subdivision 1, clauses (6) and (7); and

(3) section 142H.12, subdivisions 3 and 5, except for infants and toddlers.

(b) A drop-in child care program is exempt from the requirements in paragraph (a) if the program operates:

(1) in a child care center that houses no child care program except the drop-in child care program;

(2) in the same child care center but not during the same hours as a regularly scheduled ongoing child care program with a stable enrollment; or

(3) in a child care center at the same time as a regularly scheduled ongoing child care program with a stable enrollment, but activities, except for bathroom use and outdoor play, are conducted separately from each other.

Subd. 3.Staffing requirements.

(a) A drop-in child care program must have at least two program staff persons on site whenever the program is operating: the director or a designee and a program staff member who is qualified as a teacher.

(b) If the drop-in child care program has additional staff who are on call as a mandatory condition of their employment, the minimum child-to-staff ratio may be exceeded only for preschool and school-age children by a maximum of four children for no more than 20 minutes while additional staff are in transit. If the ratio is exceeded for more than 20 minutes, the license holder must review the mandatory on-call staff procedures and revise as necessary to ensure compliance with this section, including hiring additional on-call staff as needed.

(c) Whenever there is a total of 20 children or more at a drop-in child care center, children that are younger than 30 months must be cared for in a separate group. The group may contain children up to 60 months old. The group must be cared for in an area that is physically separated from older children.

(d) In drop-in care programs that serve both infants and older children, children up to 30 months old may be supervised by assistant teachers as long as other staff are present in appropriate ratios.

(e) A drop-in child care program may care for siblings who are all at least 16 months old together in any group. For purposes of this section, "sibling" is defined as sister or brother, half sister or half brother, or stepsister or stepbrother.

Subd. 4.Staff-to-child ratio requirements in a drop-in program.

The minimum staff-to-child ratio that a license holder may maintain in a drop-in program is:

(1) for infants, one program staff person for every four infants;

(2) for toddlers, one program staff person for every seven children;

(3) for preschoolers, one program staff person for every ten children; and

(4) for school-age children, one program staff person for every 15 children.

Subd. 5.Staff distribution.

(a) The minimum staff distribution pattern for a drop-in child care program is:

(1) the first staff member needed to meet the required staff-to-child ratio must be a teacher;

(2) the second and third staff members must have at least the qualifications of a child care aide; and

(3) the fourth staff member must have at least the qualifications of an assistant teacher.

(b) The pattern in paragraph (a) must be repeated until the number of staff needed to meet the staff-to-child ratio for each age category has been achieved.

History:

1989 c 282 art 2 s 85; 1Sp1989 c 2 s 10; 1990 c 426 art 1 s 28; 1991 c 142 s 2; 1993 c 338 s 8; 1995 c 158 s 5; 1995 c 207 art 2 s 20; 2024 c 80 art 2 s 74; 2024 c 115 art 16 s 41; 2026 c 127 art 12 s 18

NOTE: This chapter, as added by Laws 2026, chapter 127, article 12, sections 1 to 37, is effective July 1, 2027. Laws 2026, chapter 127, article 12, section 41.