Education; revise requirements of child care learning centers and family child care learning homes
Summary
HB 118 amends Georgia’s early care and learning laws to add safety requirements for child care learning centers and family child care learning homes. The bill defines a “portable airway clearance device” as a portable medical device that uses manually created suction to clear a choking victim’s airway, and it requires each covered child care center or home to keep at least one such device on the premises.
The bill also requires that every employee who cares for or supervises children at these facilities be certified in CPR within 45 days of starting employment. The measure takes effect immediately upon gubernatorial approval or upon becoming law without approval, and it repeals conflicting laws.
Impact
HB 118 would directly amend Chapter 1A of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, adding new operational requirements for child care learning centers and family child care learning homes. It would impose a new equipment mandate for airway emergency response and a new personnel training mandate for CPR certification, affecting facility operators, employees, and state regulators responsible for early care and learning compliance.
Sentiment
The available record shows no committee transcript or recorded votes, so there is no documented debate or formal opposition in the provided materials. Based on the bill’s content, it appears to be a child safety measure intended to improve emergency preparedness in child care settings, which typically suggests a broadly protective and favorable policy posture.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential areas of concern, if raised, would likely involve the cost of purchasing and maintaining airway clearance devices, the administrative burden of ensuring CPR certification within 45 days of hire, and how smaller family child care homes would comply with the new requirements. However, no legislator, committee member, or stakeholder is identified as opposing these provisions in the record provided.