Assemblyman Brian Maher has expressed approval following the passage of legislation (A.4003) that aims to align infant supervision standards for home-based childcare providers with those in childcare centers. This reform is intended to ease the operational challenges faced by family daycare providers throughout New York State.
The bill, which received bipartisan support, has passed both the Assembly and Senate. It seeks to address long-standing disparities in staffing requirements and improve access to quality infant care, particularly benefiting underserved rural communities. The legislation is now awaiting Governor Kathy Hochul’s signature to become law.
“This bill is a game-changer for countless family daycare centers, particularly in the rural communities I represent,” said Maher. “Our local providers have been doing more with less for too long and often carrying unfair staffing burdens that made it difficult to serve families in need. This will not only level the playing field, it increases access to safe, reliable infant care at a time when young families across upstate New York are struggling to find it.”
The legislation adopts the Office of Children and Family Services’ (OCFS) definition of an infant and aligns standards across different provider types. This move aims to ensure fairness, enhance operational clarity, and strengthen childcare capacity across New York State.
