Child care and development: occupational health and safety training.

Existing federal law, the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, which is administered by the State Department of Education in California, requires that a state plan include requirements that specified child care providers receive minimum health and safety training relating to, among other things, the prevention and control of infectious diseases and the handling and storage of hazardous materials in order to receive funding for child care. Existing law, the California Child Day Care Facilities Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of child day care facilities by the State Department of Social Services. Existing law, the Child Care and Development Services Act, administered by the State Department of Education, requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to administer child care and development programs that offer a full range of services for eligible children from infancy to 13 years of age, including, among others, resource and referral programs, alternative payment programs, and family child care home education networks. Willful or repeated violation of the act, or regulations promulgated under the act, is a misdemeanor. This bill would require the Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation to establish and maintain an Early Educators' Occupational Safety and Health Training Program relating to occupational health and safety risks specific to early education professionals that includes specified components, including, among others, a discussion of the risks of chemical and biological hazards, infectious diseases, and physical hazards and stress, and how to identify and minimize those risks. The bill would require an early educator to attend that training within 6 years of it first being offered, or within 3 months of the person becoming an early educator, whichever occurs later. The bill would also establish the Early Educators' Safety and Health Education Fund and specify that moneys in the fund may be expended, upon appropriation by the Legislature, by the commission to establish and maintain the training. The bill would make these provisions operative on July 1, 2018. By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.