The state of child care regulation: A comparative analysis

Abstract

A central topic of controversy surrounding contemporary debates about the adequacy of our national child care policy concerns the role of the federal government in assuring a basic level of health, safety, and quality in public child care centers and family day care homes. Consideration of a more active federal role derives, in part, from concerns about the adequacy with which state governments fulfill this protective function through their child care regulatory system. To inform this issue, the present article compares the child care standards in effect in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia as of January, 1987, and, where available, as of January, 1989. Three specific issues are addressed: (a) the variability across states in the provisions of their child care regulations; (b) the adequacy of state standards at the lower end of this range; and (c) the disparity that exists between the states' standards and various national criteria for quality child care. Provisions for staff:child ratios, group size, family day care enrollment limitations, staff training, age of entry, and inspection schedules are examined. To set the stage for the examination of state standards, an historical, legal, and ideological context for child care regulation is presented. Discussion of the results emphasizes options for a revised federal role, implications for state enforcement and training, and approaches to family day care regulation.