Montgomery, AL – A new national report shows that Alabama is one of 14 states that allows some child day care centers to operate without being licensed and with few restrictions.
The Federation of Child Care Centers of Alabama released the report by the Applied Research Center of Oakland, Calif. Tuesday during a news conference at the Alabama Statehouse.
The executive director of FOCAL, Sophia Bracy Harris, said the Legislature needs to act to require unlicensed day care centers to at least meet minimum health and safety standards.
Most privately owned day care centers in Alabama are licensed. A state law allows church owned facilities to operate without a license. Harris said about 40 percent of Alabama's 2,000 centers are unlicensed.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)