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Brendan Gilfillan
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GOVERNOR CORZINE CALLS FOR STRICTER REGULATIONS ON
CHILD CARE CENTER LICENSING
TRENTON – Governor Jon S. Corzine today called for the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to develop new regulations requiring strict environmental safety standards for New Jersey facilities providing child care services.
“Nothing is more important than our children’s health and well-being,” Governor Corzine said. “We have a responsibility to make sure that the places we trust to care for our kids are held to the highest standards for safety.”
The regulations will require applicants for new child care center licenses to certify that their facilities are not located on contaminated sites. If the sites are contaminated, applicants will be required to demonstrate that they have been sufficiently remediated.
Earlier this month, Governor Corzine directed cabinet officials in DCF, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the Department of Health and Senior Services, the Department of Community Affairs, and the Department of Labor to form an interagency task force to investigate how to improve communication among state agencies and local officials. The first meeting took place earlier this month and agencies have already begun cross-referencing environmental, health, and licensing data.
In addition, the DEP has been charged with establishing better safeguards, including improved tracking and prioritization of contaminated sites, and increased enforcement. DEP will also review its regulatory structure to determine if new rules are needed to make certain buildings located on known contaminated sites are not occupied without prior certification by state officials.
DCF has posted the list of all currently licensed child care centers on the DCF website, available at www.nj.gov/dcf/about/divisions/licensing/. DCF is now directing all applicants for a child care center license to DEP’s website and the relevant local municipalities to obtain environmental public records regarding any building and property included in a license application.
