OKLAHOMA CITY – House Bill 1847 authored by Rep. Suzanne Schreiber, D-Tulsa, and Senator Bill Coleman, R-Ponca City, became law. The new law exempts at-home childcare centers from unnecessary regulation, saving our small home childcares money and time that will both be reinvested in the business of taking care of families.
Oklahoma is facing a childcare shortage crisis, from lack of centers themselves to staffing. This bill aims to reduce the number of obstacles at-home childcare owners face, which will benefit small business owners and Oklahoma’s families. Specifically, this law removes the requirement for at-home childcare centers to install costly sprinkler systems.
“This law is such a relief for childcares. We are small businesses, and we don’t like over regulation any more than anyone else does. Not having to worry about this unnecessary cost lets us focus on our business and taking care of babies. We’ve worked on getting this done for a few years and are thankful to Rep. Schreiber and her colleagues for supporting our industry and the families we take care of,” Jackie Evans said, home childcare owner in Tulsa.
“Childcare is such a critical piece of our economic ecosystem. I have been working for the past few sessions to support this key industry for our families, our workforce, and our employers. With the help of my colleagues Rep. Ron Stewart, D-Tulsa, and Rep. Jonathan Wilk, R-Goldsby, the State Fire Marshal, local fire departments and other stakeholders, we were able to find solutions that get rid of costly unnecessary regulations and keep our kids safe and support our small business owners,” Schreiber said.
