Child Care Center Capacity Amendment Act.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
S 1
SENATE BILL 745

Short Title: Child Care Center Capacity Amendment Act. (Public)
Sponsors: Senators Chaudhuri and Burgin (Primary Sponsors).
Referred to: Rules and Operations of the Senate
March 26, 2025
*S745-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FL EXIBILITY IN CHILD C ARE SETTINGS BY ALLO WING AN 2
INCREASE IN MAXIMUM GROUP SIZES FOR INFA NTS AND TODDLERS AND 3
ALIGNING THE LICENSI NG RULE REGARDING NA P TIME SUPERVISION F OR 4
ONE-YEAR OLDS WITH THE RULE FOR TWO-YEAR OLDS. 5
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 6
SECTION 1. G.S. 110-91(7)a. reads as rewritten: 7
"a. The Commission shall adopt rules for child care centers regarding 8
staff-child ratios, group sizes and multi -age groupings other than for 9
infants and toddlers, provided that these rules shall be no less stringent 10
than those currently required for staff-child ratios as enacted in Section 11
156(e) of Chapter 757 of the 1985 Session Laws. 12
1. Except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, the minimum 13
staff-child ratios and group sizes for infants and toddlers in 14
child care centers shall be no less stringent than as follows: 15
Age Ratio Staff/Children Group Size 16
0 to 12 months 1/5 1015 17
12 to 24 months 1/6 1218 18
2 to 3 years 1/10 20. 19
No child care center shall care for more than 25 children in one 20
group. Child care centers providing care for 26 or more 21
children shall provide for two or more groups according to the 22
ages of children and shall provide separate supervisory 23
personnel and separate identifiable space for each group. 24
1a. If a child care center is operating under voluntary en hanced 25
requirements, the maximum group size for toddlers aged tw o 26
to three years may be increased from 18 to 20 children when 27
the child care center maintains a 1/9 staff-child ratio. 28
1b. If a child care center is operating under the highest voluntary 29
enhanced requirements, the child care center may use the 30
following maximum group sizes for infants and toddlers when 31
the child care center maintains staff -child ratios as provided 32
herein: 33
Age Ratio Staff/Children Group Size 34
0 to 12 months 1/4 12 35
12 to 24 months 1/5 15 36
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 Senate Bill 745-First Edition
2 to 3 years 1/8 20. 1
1c. For groups of children one year of age or older, the staff/child 2
ratio during nap time shall comply with the requirements of 3
rules adopted by the Commission if (i) at least one person 4
remains in the room, (ii) all children are visible to that person, 5
and (iii) the total number of required staff are on the premises 6
and within calling distance of the rooms occupied by children. 7
…." 8
SECTION 2. This act is effective when it becomes law. 9