What's happening
This bill prohibits licensing or renewal of day care centers near environmental hazards and sets stricter air quality and safety standards for such facilities.
Why it matters
Expands state oversight and coordination. by requiring the Office of Children and Family Services to consult with both the Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Health before approving new day care locations, ensuring multi-agency review of potential environmental risks.
Mandates upgrades for existing facilities,. not just new ones: Day care centers already operating must meet new air quality, ventilation, and safety standards within one year of license renewal, potentially requiring costly renovations but improving indoor environmental health for children and staff.
Requires ongoing hazard monitoring and response. If new environmental hazards are identified near a day care, the law triggers an evaluation and mandates remediation by the source of the hazard, prioritizing child safety without immediately penalizing the day care itself.
Improves transparency and information-sharing. by obligating environmental and health agencies to provide up-to-date data on environmental hazards to child welfare authorities annually and upon request, potentially empowering parents and communities with more information about risks near child care centers.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Protect Day Care Air Quality
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to children and families
- Reported and committed to finance
- Referred to children and families
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Protect Kids’ Daycare Air
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor Steven Englebright
Full text
3 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1103
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 6, 2017
Introduced by Sen. ALCANTARA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Children and Families
AN ACT to amend the social services law, the environmental conservation law and the public health law, in relation to the protection of air quality for day care centers
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature finds and declares that it shall be the policy of the state of New York to provide every child with an environmentally safe and healthy learning environment in which to grow, learn and mature into productive and healthy adults. To ensure that day care facilities provide this setting for our children, the legislature finds that standards for day care facilities must be protective of children's environmental health and safety. Children are uniquely vulnerable to and may be severely affected by exposure to chemicals, hazardous wastes and other environmental hazards, which affect their learning abilities as well as create chemical-based responses and sensitivities. It is the purpose of this legislation to reduce as much as possible such exposures for children and day care facility staff.
§ 2. Section 390-a of the social services law is amended by adding three new subdivisions 6, 7 and 8 to read as follows:
6. (a) No license shall be issued or renewed for a child day care center as defined in section three hundred ninety of this title, or a head start day care center funded pursuant to title V of the federal economic opportunity act of nineteen hundred sixty-four, as amended, if the building or its outdoor recreational area would be adversely impacted due to its proximity to existing and known environmental hazards, including industrial facilities, combustion facilities, inactive hazardous waste sites, hazardous substance sites, municipal or commercial landfills, and other environmental health hazards such as
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07102-01-7
S. 1103 2
radon, lead, chlorinated hydrocarbons and other toxic contaminants as determined by the departments of environmental conservation and health.
(b) The commissioner of children and family services shall consult with the commissioners of environmental conservation and health prior to the approval of any new site for a child day care center or head start day care center to ensure that such facility or its outdoor recreational area will not be adversely impacted due to its proximity to any existing and known environmental or environmental health hazards.
7. (a) No license shall be issued to a new child day care center or new head start day care center unless the building shall provide for the following where applicable: heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems that meet currently accepted industry ventilation standards; placement of air intake vents so as to maximize healthful indoor air quality; design practices that minimize ingress of and conditions favorable to pest populations; construction techniques and ventilation systems designed to eliminate radon levels in indoor air; and other measures necessary to maintain healthful, safe and comfortable conditions therein.
(b) Child day care centers or head start day care centers which are licensed prior to the effective date of this subdivision and which do not meet the requirements of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, shall meet such requirements within one year from the renewal date of their license, otherwise such license shall not be renewed.
8. In the event that any new environmental or environmental health hazard is identified due to its proximity to a child day care center or head start day care center, the office of children and family services shall request the department of health to evaluate the impact of such hazard on the child day care center or head start day care center, and if the new environmental or environmental health hazard is found to have an impact, the department of health shall require such facility creating such new environmental or environmental health hazard to remediate the hazard within ninety days without any adverse action upon the license or license renewal of the child day care center or head start day care center.
§ 3. The environmental conservation law is amended by adding a new section 3-0320 to read as follows: § 3-0320. Information for the office of children and family services.
Pursuant to subdivision six of section three hundred ninety-a of the social services law the department shall annually provide all necessary information to the office of children and family services regarding existing and known locations of existing and known environmental hazards, including industrial facilities, combustion facilities, inactive hazardous waste sites, hazardous substance sites, municipal or commercial landfills, and other environmental health hazards such as radon, lead, chlorinated hydrocarbons and other toxic contaminants as determined by the department and the department of health. Whenever the office of children and family services requests such information from the department, such information shall be provided within thirty days of receipt of such request.
§ 4. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 201-a to read as follows:
§ 201-a. Information for the office of children and family services. Pursuant to subdivision six of section three hundred ninety-a of the social services law, the department shall annually provide all necessary information to the office of children and family services regarding existing and known locations of environmental health hazards such as
S. 1103 3
radon, lead, chlorinated hydrocarbons and other toxic contaminants. Whenever the office of children and family services requests such information from the department, such information shall be provided within thirty days of receipt of such request.
§ 5. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the social services law, the environmental conservation law and the public health law, in relation to the protection of air quality for day care centers
Purpose or general idea of the bill
To ensure that child care daycare centers and head start daycare centers are not exposed to hazardous or toxic environmental pollutants due to their proximity to hazardous sources; that specifications for indoor air ventilation systems are protective of healthful indoor air quality; that design techniques minimize the ingress of pest populations; and that construction techniques eliminate lead, radon and other toxic contaminants.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 Legislative intent
Section 2. Amends section 390-a of the Social Services law adding three new subdivisions 6, 7 and 8. Prohibits the Commissioner of the Office of Children and Family Services to issue a license to any child care daycare center or head start day Care center if it would be adversely impacted due to its proximity to existing and known sources of environmental health hazards, including dry cleaning operations using perchloroethylene on their premises except in certain cases. It also requires that the issuance of daycare licenses be contingent upon conditions affecting the buildings indoor air quality, including: proper ventilation and air, heating and cooling systems protective of healthful indoor air quality; design practices to minimize pest population; and construction techniques to eliminate exposure to lead, radon and other toxic contaminants.
Requires that any currently licensed day care center that does not meet the requirements outlined in this subdivision, must meet these requirements within one year of the renewal date of the license.
Sections 3 and 4, requires the Commissioners of the Departments of Environmental Conservation and Health to provide information to the Office of Children and Families as to existing and known sources of environmental hazards on an annual basis and as requested by the Commissioner of the Office of Children and Families.
Section 5. Effective date
Existing law
There is currently no statutory requirements which would prohibit the location of day care centers near to existing and known sources of environmental hazards. Nor are there any standards for building specifications that ensure that indoor air quality is healthful, or that exposure to pests, lead, radon and other environmental health hazards are eliminated or reduced as much as possible.
Justification
This legislation is intended to ensure that day care centers are safe and healthy environments; and to avoid problems such as occurred in the Town of Guilderland where children were exposed to harmful levels of perchioroethylene from a dry cleaner that had laundering operations on the same premises as the day care center. These protections are accomplished by ensuring that the building's location, construction and design will eliminate or minimize exposure to harmful environmental pollutants. Children may be severely impaired by exposure to pollutants emitted from hazardous areas, and from exposures to pesticides, lead, radon, and other toxic contaminants in the environment. These pollutants can impair their learning abilities, induce sensitive reactions to chemicals, and possibly cause irreparable harm to health. It is critically important that exposure to these hazards be eliminated or reduced as much as possible.
Legislative history
5/21/03 Passed Assembly (A392) 03/08/04 Passed Assembly 2005-06 A.5177 Passed assembly 2007-08 A8838 passed assembly 2009-10 A1742 passed assembly 2011-12 A3764 Health
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
The law takes effect 90 days after it becomes law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.