BLDG. CODE FAM. CHILD CARE HOME CLASS.

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View NCGA Bill Details(link is external)2025-2026 Session
House Bill 309 (Public) Filed Wednesday, March 5, 2025
AN ACT TO DIRECT THE RESIDENTIAL CODE COUNCIL AND BUILDING CODE COUNCIL TO CREATE A FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME OCCUPANCY CLASSIFICATION WITHIN THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BUILDING CODE, TO MAKE VARIOUS CHILD CARE REGULATORY REFORMS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR FLEXIBILITIES IN SCHOOL-AGE CHILD CARE.
Intro. by Arp, Lambeth, Paré, Rhyne.
Status: Re-ref Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate (Senate action) (May 22 2025)

SOG comments (1):

Long title change

Submitted by iveybyrd on

Previous title was AN ACT TO DIRECT THE RESIDENTIAL CODE COUNCIL AND BUILDING CODE 3 COUNCIL TO CREATE A FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME OCCUPANCY 4 CLASSIFICATION WITHIN THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE BUILDING CODE, TO 5 MAKE VARIOUS CHILD CARE REGULATORY REFORMS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR 6 FLEXIBILITIES IN SCHOOL-AGE CHILD CARE.

Bill History:

H 309

Bill Summaries:

  • Bill H 309 (2025-2026)
    Summary date: May 22 2025 - View Summary

    Senate committee substitute to the 1st edition makes the following changes. Makes conforming changes to the act’s long title. Makes organizational changes, including dividing the act into parts. Makes technical and conforming changes throughout the act.

    Part IV.

    Allows five years of documented experience teaching in a licensed child care facility in the State to be equivalent to the NC Early Childhood Credential (Credential) required under GS 110-91(8) (qualifications for child care staff). Makes conforming changes to Section 8 of SL 2024-34 (QRIS modifications) to account for the new five-year work experience alternative to the Credential added to GS 110-91(8), above.

    Amends GS 110-91(7)a (staff/child ratios for childcare centers), as follows. Increases the maximum group size for children aged 0 to 12 months from 10 to 15 children and from 12 to 18 for children aged 12 to 24 months. Specifies that if a childcare center is operating under voluntary enhanced requirements, the maximum group size for toddlers aged 2 to 3 years may be increased from 18 to 20 children when the child care center maintains a 1:9 staff-child ratio. Sets forth maximum group sizes for infants and toddlers ranging from groups of 12 with a child/staff ratio of 1:4 for children aged 0 to 12 months to groups of 20 with a child/staff ratio of 1:8 for children 2-3 years if the childcare center is operating under the highest voluntary enhanced requirements.

    Requires the DHHS, Division of Child Development and Early Education (Division) to coordinate with the Child Care Commission (Commission) to clarify rules on multi-use child care centers to ensure they: (1) allow the use of existing buildings to house multi-unit child care centers and include mixed-age centers if they meet the requirements outlined in the rules regarding multi-unit child care centers and (2) grant individual licenses within a multi-unit child care center based on the square footage used by each owner. Directs that applicants who meet the pre-licensing guidelines and are awarded a license by the Division are considered eligible to qualify as a tenant in a multi-use facility.

    Part V.

    Instructs, in GS 110-91, that any building and grounds which are currently approved for school occupancy and which house a public or private elementary or middle school are deemed to have met the space, equipment, sanitation, fire, and building code requirements for a licensed child care facility when the building and grounds are serving the same, or a subset of the same, school-age children in an out-of-school child care program. Makes conforming changes. Directs the Commission to adopt or amend any rules to ensure uniformity and consistency in application of the exemptions for school-age children in out-of-school childcare programs.

    Amends the required qualifications for child care staff listed in GS 110-91(8) to allow child care center administrators to have the School-Age Administration Credential, as an alternative to the North Carolina Early Childhood Administration Credential. Makes conforming changes. 

    Amends GS 110-98.5(3) which provides that when remote or virtual learning is required because of a state of emergency, care given to school-age children is not considered child care, by adding that if a program was licensed before the state of emergency, it is deemed licensed during the state of emergency whether it expands its capacity to provide services to more children so long as it follows the staff to child ratios for licensure.

    Adds the Weikart Youth Program Quality Assessment ("Weikart Program") as an assessment tool for evaluating out-of-school child care programs and awarding of a star-rating. Requires the Division to take the described steps and have the Weikart Program available for applicants no later than one year after the act becomes law.

    Part VI. 

    Directs the Division to establish the Licensed Childcare Licensure Workgroup (Workgroup) to examine streamlining regulatory requirements related to the physical structures of licensed childcare facilities, consisting of representatives from the nine listed agencies along with other representatives deemed necessary by the Division. Tasks the Workgroup with developing findings and recommendations related to streamlining the regulatory requirements related to the physical structures of childcare facilities, as described, and resolving conflicts between various code requirements for licensed childcare facilities. Requires the Division to report its findings and recommendations to the specified NCGA committees and division by no later than one year after the act becomes law. 

    Development, Land Use and Housing, Building and Construction, Education, Preschool, Elementary and Secondary Education, Government, State Agencies, Department of Health and Human Services, Health and Human Services, Social Services, Child Welfare
    GS 110
  • Bill H 309 (2025-2026)
    Summary date: Mar 5 2025 - View Summary

    Section 1

    Requires the Office of State Fire Marshal, the Residential Code and Building Code Councils (Councils), and State and local governments enforcing the North Carolina State Building Code (Code) to adhere to the following family child care home requirements until the effective date of the rules to create a family child care home occupancy classification within a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Residential Code.

    Requires a family child care home that is located in a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Residential Code to be treated as a Residential Group R-3 occupancy. Requires the building to be permitted to comply with the Residential Code, provided the family child care home meets only the five additional specified requirements related to exit location, fire extinguishers, safety plans, carbon monoxide detection, and smoke alarms. Requires the Residential Code Council to adopt rules to amend the North Carolina Residential Code to create a family child care home occupancy classification within a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Residential Code that is consistent with these provisions. Requires the Building Code Council to adopt rules to amend the North Carolina State Building Code volumes, as specified, to make conforming changes consistent with the rules adopted by the Residential Code Council. Specifies that the rules are not subject to Part 3 of Article 2A of GS Chapter 150B and that the rules will become effective as provided in GS 150B-21.3(b1), as though 10 or more written objections had been received.

    Section 2

    Requires, until the effective date of the rules to create a family child care home occupancy classification within a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Building Code, that the Office of the State Fire Marshal, the Councils, and State and local governments enforcing the Code adhere to family child care home requirements as provided below.

    Treats a family child care home located within a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Building Code as a Residential Group R-3 occupancy. Allows the dwelling where the family child care home is located to comply with the North Carolina Building Code, so long as the family child care home meets only the five specified additional requirements related to exit location, fire extinguishers, safety plans, carbon monoxide detection, and smoke alarms. Requires the Building Code Council to adopt rules to amend the specified North Carolina State Building Code volumes to create a family child care home occupancy classification within a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Building Code that is consistent with these requirements. Require the Residential Code Council to adopt rules to amend the North Carolina Residential Code to make conforming changes consistent with the rules adopted by the Building Code Council. Specifies that the rules are not subject to Part 3 of Article 2A of GS Chapter 150B and that the rules will become effective as provided in GS 150B-21.3(b1), as though 10 or more written objections had been received.

    Section 3

    Requires, until the effective date of the rules to create a family child care home occupancy classification within a dwelling subject to the State of North Carolina Regulations for Manufactured Homes, that the Office of the State Fire Marshal, the Councils, and State and local governments enforcing the Code adhere to family child care home requirements as provided below.

    Treats a family child care home located within a dwelling subject to the State of North Carolina Regulations for Manufactured Homes as a Residential Group R-3 occupancy. Allows the dwelling to comply with the North Carolina Regulations for Manufactured Homes, so long as the family child care home meets only the five specified additional requirements related to exit location, fire extinguishers, safety plans, carbon monoxide detection, and smoke alarms. Requires the Building Code Council to adopt rules to amend the specified North Carolina State Building Code volumes to create a family child care home occupancy classification within a dwelling subject to the North Carolina Regulations for Manufactured Homes that is consistent with these requirements. Requires the Residential Code Council to adopt rules to amend the North Carolina Residential Code to make conforming changes consistent with the rules adopted by the Building Code Council. Specifies that the rules are not subject to Part 3 of Article 2A of GS Chapter 150B and that the rules will become effective as provided in GS 150B-21.3(b1), as though 10 or more written objections had been received.

    Section 4

    Amends GS 110-86, by amending the definition of child care facility by requiring that a family child care home be located in an operator-occupied private dwelling (was, in a residence).

    Amends GS 110-91, concerning standards to be met for a child care facility license, by making conforming and technical changes. Also refers to the Office of the State Fire Marshal, instead of the Department of Insurance, as the entity responsible for establishing requirements related to fire prevention and safe evacuation, as well as for the related annual inspection.

    Development, Land Use and Housing, Building and Construction, Health and Human Services, Social Services, Child Welfare
    GS 110
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