Committee advances bill requiring childcare centers to disclose video and mandatory-reporter policies

Committee members advanced Senate Bill 50 after sponsors said the measure would standardize disclosures to families about mandatory-reporting obligations and any use of video recording at child-care facilities.

"This bill will ensure that childcare centers clearly state that staffs are mandatory reporters and that they have a legal responsibility to report suspected abuse and neglect," sponsor Representative Joseph said, adding the measure does not require centers to install cameras but requires disclosure when cameras are used.

Catherine McHenry, representing the Early Care and Education Consortium, supported the bill and said policies and procedures about camera use and parental access should be available in written form and be part of routine oversight. "It is important that families have all information about a provider's chosen use of camera policies and procedures in a written and easily accessible format," she told the committee.

Sponsors and supporters said the bill is designed to build transparency and parental trust; the Department of Early Childhood was cited as the enforcement/oversight pathway via inclusion of policies in annual inspections. Committee members asked about compliance costs and enforcement; witnesses said costs should be minimal and that existing inspection or enforcement mechanisms would ensure policies are implemented.

The committee moved SB 50 to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation; the clerk reported the motion passed by a tally of 11–2. Supporters said the bill clarifies parents' rights to know whether cameras exist and how footage is handled; opponents raised no recorded amendments during the hearing.