Planning & Zoning Commission (linked)

Substitute House Bill No. 6590 
 
Public Act No. 23-142 
 
 
AN ACT CONCERNING CERTAIN PROTECTIONS FOR GROUP AND 
FAMILY CHILD CARE HOMES. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General 
Assembly convened: 
 
Section 1. Section 8-3j of the general statutes is repealed and the 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 
(a) No zoning regulation shall treat any family child care home 
[registered] or group child care home, located in a residence and 
licensed by the Office of Early Childhood pursuant to [section 17b-733] 
chapter 368a, in a manner different from single or multifamily 
dwellings. 
(b) Not later than December 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, each 
municipality shall submit to the Office of Policy and Management a 
sworn statement from the chief executive officer of the municipality 
stating (1) that the municipality's zoning ordinances are in compliance 
with (A) subsection (a) of this section, and (B) the provisions of 
subdivision (1) of subsection (d) of section 8-2, as amended by this act, 
or (2) the specific time frame within which the municipality will bring 
its zoning ordinances into compliance with subsection (a) of this section 
and subsection (d) of section 8-2, as amended by this act. 
Sec. 2. Subsection (d) of section 8-2 of the general statutes is repealed 

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and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 
(d) Zoning regulations adopted pursuant to subsection (a) of this 
section shall not: 
(1) (A) Prohibit the operation in a residential zone of any family child 
care home or group child care home [in a residential zone] located in a 
residence, or (B) require any special zoning permit or special zoning 
exception for such operation; 
(2) (A) Prohibit the use of receptacles for the storage of items 
designated for recycling in accordance with section 22a-241b or require 
that such receptacles comply with provisions for bulk or lot area, or 
similar provisions, except provisions for side yards, rear yards and front 
yards; or (B) unreasonably restrict access to or the size of such 
receptacles for businesses, given the nature of the business and the 
volume of items designated for recycling in accordance with section 22a-
241b, that such business produces in its normal course of business, 
provided nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit such 
regulations from requiring the screening or buffering of such receptacles 
for aesthetic reasons; 
(3) Impose conditions and requirements on manufactured homes, 
including mobile manufactured homes, having as their narrowest 
dimension twenty-two feet or more and built in accordance with federal 
manufactured home construction and safety standards or on lots 
containing such manufactured homes, including mobile manufactured 
home parks, if those conditions and requirements are substantially 
different from conditions and requirements imposed on (A) single-
family dwellings; (B) lots containing single-family dwellings; or (C) 
multifamily dwellings, lots containing multifamily dwellings, cluster 
developments or planned unit developments; 
(4) (A) Prohibit the continuance of any nonconforming use, building 

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or structure existing at the time of the adoption of such regulations; (B) 
require a special permit or special exception for any such continuance; 
(C) provide for the termination of any nonconforming use solely as a 
result of nonuse for a specified period of time without regard to the 
intent of the property owner to maintain that use; or (D) terminate or 
deem abandoned a nonconforming use, building or structure unless the 
property owner of such use, building or structure voluntarily 
discontinues such use, building or structure and such discontinuance is 
accompanied by an intent to not reestablish such use, building or 
structure. The demolition or deconstruction of a nonconforming use, 
building or structure shall not by itself be evidence of such property 
owner's intent to not reestablish such use, building or structure; 
(5) Prohibit the installation, in accordance with the provisions of 
section 8-1bb, of temporary health care structures for use by mentally or 
physically impaired persons if such structures comply with the 
provisions of said section, unless the municipality opts out in 
accordance with the provisions of subsection (j) of said section; 
(6) Prohibit the operation in a residential zone of any cottage food 
operation, as defined in section 21a-62b; 
(7) Establish for any dwelling unit a minimum floor area that is 
greater than the minimum floor area set forth in the applicable building, 
housing or other code; 
(8) Place a fixed numerical or percentage cap on the number of 
dwelling units that constitute multifamily housing over four units, 
middle housing or mixed-use development that may be permitted in the 
municipality; 
(9) Require more than one parking space for each studio or one-
bedroom dwelling unit or more than two parking spaces for each 
dwelling unit with two or more bedrooms, unless the municipality opts 

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out in accordance with the provisions of section 8-2p; or 
(10) Be applied to deny any land use application, including for any 
site plan approval, special permit, special exception or other zoning 
approval, on the basis of (A) a district's character, unless such character 
is expressly articulated in such regulations by clear and explicit physical 
standards for site work and structures, or (B) the immutable 
characteristics, source of income or income level of any applicant or end 
user, other than age or disability whenever age-restricted or disability-
restricted housing may be permitted. 
Sec. 3. Subsection (a) of section 19a-87b of the general statutes is 
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 
1, 2023): 
(a) No person, group of persons, association, organization, 
corporation, institution or agency, public or private, shall maintain a 
family child care home, as described in section 19a-77, without a license 
issued by the Commissioner of Early Childhood. Licensure forms shall 
be obtained from the Office of Early Childhood. Applications for 
licensure shall be made to the commissioner on forms provided by the 
office and shall contain the information required by regulations adopted 
under this section. The licensure and application forms shall contain a 
notice that false statements made therein are punishable in accordance 
with section 53a-157b. Applicants shall state, in writing, that they are in 
compliance with the regulations adopted by the commissioner pursuant 
to subsection (f) of this section. Before a family child care home license 
is granted, the office shall make an inquiry and investigation which shall 
include a visit and inspection of the premises for which the license is 
requested. Any inspection conducted by the office shall include an 
inspection for evident sources of lead poisoning. The office shall provide 
for a chemical analysis of any paint chips found on such premises. 
Neither the commissioner nor the commissioner's designee shall require 
an annual inspection for homes seeking license renewal or for licensed 

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homes, except that the commissioner or the commissioner's designee 
shall make an unannounced visit, inspection or investigation of each 
licensed family child care home at least once every year. A licensed 
family child care home shall not be subject to any conditions on the 
operation of such home by local officials, other than those imposed by 
the office pursuant to this subsection, if the home complies with all 
[local] codes and ordinances applicable to single and multifamily 
dwellings. 
Sec. 4. Section 19a-80 of the general statutes is repealed and the 
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2023): 
(a) No person, group of persons, association, organization, 
corporation, institution or agency, public or private, shall maintain a 
child care center or group child care home without a license issued in 
accordance with this section and sections 19a-77 to [19a-80] 19a-79a, 
inclusive, and 19a-82 to 19a-87a, inclusive. Applications for such license 
shall be made to the Commissioner of Early Childhood on forms 
provided by the commissioner and shall contain the information 
required by regulations adopted under said sections. The forms shall 
contain a notice that false statements made therein are punishable in 
accordance with section 53a-157b. 
(b) (1) Upon receipt of an application for a license, the commissioner 
shall issue such license if, upon inspection and investigation, said 
commissioner finds that the applicant, the facilities and the program 
meet the health, educational and social needs of children likely to attend 
the child care center or group child care home and comply with 
requirements established by regulations adopted under this section and 
sections 19a-77 to 19a-79a, inclusive, and sections 19a-82 to 19a-87a, 
inclusive. Any such inspection under this subsection of a group child 
care home located in a residence shall include an inspection for evident 
sources of lead poisoning and shall provide for chemical analysis of any 
paint chips found on such premises. The commissioner shall offer an 

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expedited application review process for an application submitted by a 
municipal agency or department. A currently licensed person or entity, 
as described in subsection (a) of this section, seeking a change of 
operator, ownership or location shall file a new license application, 
except such person or entity may request the commissioner to waive the 
requirement that a new license application be filed. The commissioner 
may grant or deny such request. Each license shall be for a term of four 
years, shall be nontransferable, and may be renewed upon receipt by the 
commissioner of a renewal application and accompanying licensure fee. 
The commissioner may suspend or revoke such license after notice and 
an opportunity for a hearing as provided in section 19a-84 for violation 
of the regulations adopted under this section and sections 19a-77 to 19a-
79a, inclusive, and sections 19a-82 to 19a-87a, inclusive. In the case of an 
application for renewal of a license that has expired, the commissioner 
may renew such expired license within thirty days of the date of such 
expiration upon receipt of a renewal application and accompanying 
licensure fee. 
(2) The commissioner shall collect from the licensee of a child care 
center a fee of five hundred dollars prior to issuing or renewing a license 
for a term of four years. The commissioner shall collect from the licensee 
of a group child care home a fee of two hundred fifty dollars prior to 
issuing or renewing a license for a term of four years. The commissioner 
shall require only one license for a child care center operated in two or 
more buildings, provided the same licensee provides child care services 
in each building and the buildings are joined together by a contiguous 
playground that is part of the licensed space. 
(3) The commissioner, or the commissioner's designee, shall make an 
unannounced visit, inspection or investigation of each licensed child 
care center and group child care home at least once each year. At least 
once every two years, the local health director, or the local health 
director's designee, shall [make an inspection of] inspect each licensed 

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child care center and group child care home. 
(4) A municipality may not subject the operation of a licensed group 
child care home located in a residence to any conditions, other than 
those imposed by the commissioner pursuant to this subsection, if the 
group child care home complies with all codes and ordinances 
applicable to single and multifamily dwellings. 
(c) The commissioner shall require each prospective employee of a 
child care center or group child care home for a position that requires 
the provision of care to a child or involves unsupervised access to any 
child in such child care center or group child care home, to submit to 
comprehensive background checks, including state and national 
criminal history records checks. The criminal history records checks 
required pursuant to this subsection shall be conducted in accordance 
with section 29-17a. The commissioner shall also request a check of the 
state child abuse registry established pursuant to section 17a-101k. The 
Commissioner of Early Childhood shall notify each licensee of the 
provisions of this subsection. No such prospective employee shall begin 
working in such child care center or group child care home until the 
provisions of 45 CFR 98.43(d)(4), as amended from time to time, have 
been satisfied. 
(d) The commissioner shall inform each licensee, by way of a plain 
language summary provided not later than sixty days after the 
regulation's effective date, of new or changed regulations adopted 
under this section and sections 19a-77 to [19a-80] 19a-79a, inclusive, or 
sections 19a-82 to 19a-87a, inclusive, with which a licensee must comply. 
Approved June 26, 2023