ST. PAUL 鈥� Two new bills would ease qualification requirements for child care professionals and give parents drop-off and pick-up flexibility in an effort to address rising child care costs and staff shortages across the state.
Minnesota lawmakers considered and on Monday afternoon, Feb. 25, in the House Children and Families Finance and Policy Committee.
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HF 1247, which would provide flexibility for drop-off and pick-up time at child care centers, is on its way to the House floor after quickly moving through the committee. Sponsored by Rep. Danny Nadeau, R-Rogers, the bill extends an existing law that was set to expire this year.
If passed, the bill would extend a pilot program allowing aides who meet the criteria, in addition to assistant teachers, to substitute for a teacher during a child care center鈥檚 arrival and departure times.
Jen Orth, owner of Hypointe Child Care facilities in Lakeville and Rosemont, said the legislation has had an impact on both her business and her family. She said seeing her children off to school in the morning and welcoming them home in the afternoon was not possible before the 2023 legislation went into effect.
On a professional level, Orth said the legislation has been transformative for her facilities.
鈥淲ith this flexibility, I have been able to schedule teachers more strategically, ensuring that they are present when their expertise is much more needed, rather than requiring them to cover the early mornings and late nights,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his has significantly reduced the need for overtime, which is crucial in preventing burnout and keeping the cost of child care low.鈥�
was met with some resistance and tabled for later consideration.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Paul Torkelson, R-Hanska, would ease some regulations that limit the number of people eligible to work in child care facilities.
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For example, an assistant teacher in a child care setting must be 18, have a high school diploma and have at least 2,080 hours of experience in education. If HF 628 passes, an assistant teacher would need to be 16 and complete the required training as currently prescribed under state law.
Maria Harms, owner and operator of Snug as a Bug Childcare in Redwood Falls, said she is concerned about the 鈥渕ountain of regulations鈥� she is required to integrate into her business model.
鈥淗uman error in this field will always exist,鈥� she said. 鈥淟icensed care personnel are there to identify those operations that need extra attention, guidance and correction. We are currently experiencing staff shortages, exacerbated by regulation, which creates capacity issues and directly affects sustainability.鈥�
Rep. Samantha Spencer-Mura, DFL-Minneapolis, asked Harms how easing regulations would lower child care costs.
鈥淚n order to have teachers, assistant teachers and aides within the classroom, they have to be qualified,鈥� Harms said. 鈥淪o they have to get an education. They have to do so many hours in the classroom, which in turn requires us to pay them more. If we have to pay our staff higher, we have to charge families more.鈥�
Spencer-Mura responded by saying that child care workers should be paid more.
鈥淚f the affordability in this bill comes from paying the people that are doing the most important work of caring for children less, I just fundamentally don鈥檛 think that鈥檚 the solution,鈥� she said.
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Rep. Nathan Coulter, DFL-Bloomington, also expressed concern about quality of care.
鈥淐hild care is education, and I get a little bit anxious when we act as though it鈥檚 not,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 arguably more important education than kids will receive at any other time in their lives. We are not only doing a disservice to the industry by ignoring the very real issues, the very real economic issues that make child care a broken system 鈥� but more importantly, doing the disservice to the kids.鈥�
Rep. Nolan West, R-Blaine, chair of the Children and Families Committee, said he expects he will soon be spending his entire legislative salary on day care and said they can鈥檛 rule out these kinds of changes.
West made what he called a 鈥渉yperbolic鈥� example of parents who may not meet every current state requirement for child care workers.
鈥淭o say that we cannot look at this or that any reduction in qualifications is completely unacceptable, it basically says that any parent with their first child isn鈥檛 fit to raise their child,鈥� he said. 鈥淐hildren don鈥檛 necessarily need that kind of regimented education. Some parents might want that path, some parents might not.鈥�
The House advanced , HF633, which would establish a 50% market value exclusion for in-home family day care or group family day care providers.
The bills come as an estimated $16,000 per child per year, according to a 2023 study from the Minnesota Department of Human Services. The number places Minnesota fourth in the nation for highest child care costs, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
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