Dear Residential Child Care Provider,
The purpose of this communication is to notify you that Residential Child Care Regulation (RCCR) is changing the weight of 26 TAC §748.151(1), which requires a general residential operation to designate a full-time child-care administrator who is responsible for carrying out the responsibilities outlined in 26 TAC §748.535:
- Having daily supervision and on-site administrative responsibility for the overall operation;
- Overseeing staffing patterns to ensure that the supervision and the provision of child-care services that meet the needs of children in care;
- Ensuring the provision of planned but flexible program activities designed to meet the developmental needs of children;
- Having a system in place to ensure an employee is available to handle emergencies;
- Assigning tasks to caregivers that do not conflict or interfere with their responsibilities;
- Administrating and managing the operation according to the operation’s policies;
- Ensuring that the operation complies with applicable laws, rules, and minimum standards;
- Ensuring that a child in care does not act as a caregiver; and
- Not allowing a person whose behavior or health status presents a danger to children to be present at the operation.
Due to the importance of these duties, RCCR will change the weight of §748.151(1) from Medium to High effective 04/25/2022.
Also on this date, in accordance with Section 42.080 of the Human Resources Code, as added by Senate Bill 1896 (87th Regular Session), RCCR inspectors will follow these procedures when a licensed child-care administrator leaves an operation that does not have back-up administrator on staff to carry out the duties in 26 TAC §748.535:
- Continue to provide technical assistance for 26 TAC §748.151(1) and give the operation 60 days to hire an administrator (as described in the CCR provider communication sent on 09/01/2021);
- If the operation has not hired a new administrator by the end of the 60 days, cite 26 TAC §748.151(1) and give the operation 30 additional days to come into compliance before taking any enforcement actions;
- If the operation has not hired a new administrator by the end of the 30 days, cite 26 TAC §748.151(1) again, recommend an administrative penalty for the maximum amount for each day past the compliance date that the operation fails to come into compliance, and give the operation 30 additional days to come into compliance before taking an additional enforcement action; and
- If the operation does not hire a new administrator at the end of the last 30-day timeframe, consider further enforcement action.