BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1820
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Date of Hearing: April 24, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES
Jim Beall Jr., Chair
AB 1820 (Block) - As Amended: March 29, 2012
SUBJECT : Child Safety: day care facilities: push pins
SUMMARY : Prohibits licensed child day care facilities from
using or possessing push pins in areas accessible to children
who are six years of age or younger. Specifically, this bill :
1)Prohibits a licensed child day care facility from using or
possessing push pins in any area of the facility accessible to
children who are six years old or younger.
2)Requires the Department of Social Services (DSS) to determine
compliance with this section only during a regularly
scheduled, authorized inspection.
3)Does not require nor preclude DSS from conducting an
independent or separate inspection visit for an alleged
violation of this section.
4)Subjects violations of this section to existing law, which
makes it a misdemeanor for violation of this prohibition,
punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000, or no more than 180
days in county jail, or a combination of a fine and
imprisonment.
EXISTING LAW
1)Establishes the California Child Day Care Facilities Act
(CDCFA) to provide a comprehensive, quality system for
licensing child care facilities to ensure a quality day care
environment and states that good quality child care services
are essential services for working parents.
2)Sets licensing requirements and provides authority to DSS to
develop and adopt regulations to administer the act, including
the authority to set licensing standards for facilities that
provide nonmedical care to children under the age of 18.
3)Defines a "day care center" as any child day care facility
other than a family day care home, and includes infant
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centers, preschools, extended day care facilities, and school
age child care centers.
4)Defines a "family day care home" as a home that regularly
provides care, protection and supervision for 14 or fewer
children for periods of less than 24 hours per day.
5)By regulation, requires child care centers to be clean, safe,
sanitary, and in good repair at all times to ensure the safety
and well-being of children, employees and visitors.
6)By regulation, requires child care centers to be maintained,
in good condition, free of sharp, loose or pointed parts. All
play equipment and materials shall be age appropriate.
7)By regulation, requires child care centers to provide safe
toys, play equipment and materials and the (child care) home
shall be free from defects or conditions which might endanger
a child.
8)Requires child day care centers and family day care homes to
have on site at least one staff person who holds a valid
certification in pediatric first aid and pediatric
cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) whenever children are
present at the center or home.
9)Allows a parent or guardian of a child receiving services from
a licensed child day care facility the ability to enter and
inspect the facility providing services to their child without
advance notice during normal operating hours.
10)Allows any person to file a complaint against a child day
care facility, either in writing or orally, alleging a
violation of law.
11)Requires DSS, if determined to be made on a reasonable basis,
to make an onsite inspection of the facility within ten days
of receipt of the complaint.
12)Provides authority to DSS to deny, temporarily suspend,
suspend, or revoke the license of any licensed child care
agency if DSS determines that the facility engaged in efforts
to aide, abet, or act in violation of the law.
13)Provides that a person who willfully or repeatedly violates
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any provision of the CDCFA may be charged with a misdemeanor.
If convicted, the individual may be subject to a fine of no
more than $1,000 or 180 days in county jail, or a combination
of both, for each violation.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : In February, 2010 the American Academy of Pediatrics
published an article titled "Prevention of Choking Among
Children." According to this article, choking is a leading
cause of morbidity and mortality, especially those aged three
years or younger. It sites a number of reasons why young
children are more likely than older children to suffer from
airway blockages:
1) Young children have decreased developmental physical
abilities reflective of their young age who oftentimes do
not have the physical ability to properly chew and swallow
food or pass foreign objects through their digestive
system.
2) Due to the smaller diameter of a child's airway, small
objects are much more likely to get stuck in their throat
or esophagus.
3) As children learn to crawl and walk, they become more
mobile and inquisitive about their surrounding environment,
which includes greater exploration and experiences that can
include putting non-food foreign objects into their mouths.
The article concludes that choking is an important public health
problem for young children and that choking hazards are
primarily associated with food, coins and toys. However, it is
not unreasonable to determine that any small object, whether it
is food, a toy, or an item such as a push pin can present a
danger to young children if swallowed or ingested.
Additionally, in a ten-year review of young children who
suffered from a blocked airway due to the ingestion of a foreign
object published in the International Journal of Pediatric
Otorhinolaryngology, it was found that food is the most common
cause of airway blockages in young children. Most common to
cause blockages are "globular food objects" such as hotdogs,
nuts, candies and grapes. In regards to non-food blockages, it
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was found that rubber balloons and small plastic items were the
most frequent cause of choking in young children.
There are a number of studies, reports and published articles
available that highlight the dangers and threat choking hazards
present to young children. In many of these published
documents, there are a variety of items documented as having
caused an airway blockage in young children. They include
rocks, plastic pen caps, balloons, peanuts, etc.
In 1994, the federal Hazardous Substance Act was amended by the
Child Safety Protection Act (CSPA) to require hazard warning
labels be placed upon packaging for small toys that can present
a choking hazard for young children. The CSPA requires, among
other things, the banning or labeling of toys that pose a
choking risk to small children. The CPSA specifically requires:
The banning of small balls (or toys that contain small
balls) with a diameter of 1.75 inches if the toy or ball is
intended for use by children under 3 years of age.
Any toy or game that is intended for use by children who
are at least 3 years old but less than 7 years of age be
conspicuously labeled with a warning statement that the toy
contains a small part and it therefore poses a choking
hazard to small children. The Act defines a small part as
one that fits completely into a small part tester with a
diameter of 1.25 inches.
Any latex balloon (or toy or game that contains a latex
balloon) be conspicuously labeled to warn parents about the
choking hazards associated with an un-inflated balloon, or
broken balloons.
Although this bill proposes to singularly prohibit the use or
possession of push pins in child day care facilities, the causes
of choking are vast and can be anything within reach of a young
child that is small enough to get lodged in their throat or
esophagus. Would it be more prudent to align this bill with the
choking hazards specifications established by the CSPA to ensure
greater uniformity with federal law and provide more generally
inclusive restrictions to prevent young children access to any
choking hazard?
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Additionally, amending the Health and Safety Code to
specifically prohibit the use or possession of pushpins in child
day care facilities may inadvertently give rise to repeated
legislative efforts to itemize specific choking hazards, which
could lead to the code becoming cumbersome and overly
prescriptive.
It can be argued that DSS licensing regulations already prohibit
the use or possession of pushpins in child care facilities, as
it may fall under the restriction of items that could present a
danger to young children. However, neither the statute nor
licensing regulations specifically restrict the presence of
choking hazards. Amending this measure to be more reflective of
choking hazards in general, rather than that of a specific type
of hazard would help to clarify current law and provide a
greater general protection against choking hazards for young
children.
Need for this bill:
According to the author, push pins "pose a heightened risk for
small children if ingested due to their small size, design and
sharp point." Due to its sharp point, if ingested, a push pin
can become lodged in the throat, airway, esophagus or other part
of a child's digestive system, which can prove to be nearly
impossible to retrieve under normal first aid procedures,
including the use of CPR or the Heimlich maneuver.
RECOMMENDED AMENDMENTS:
Staff recommends the following amendments:
Since choking hazards can include a variety of items, this bill
should be amended to reflect the need to address the increased
health problems choking hazards cause for young children.
Rather than address specifically a singular item, utilizing the
choking hazard specifications established by the CSPA, this bill
should require areas used to serve children under the age of six
in child day care facilities be free of choking hazards, such as
pushpins, small toys, and other items that measure less than
1.75 inches in diameter. Specifically, amend page two of this
bill, lines three through five to read:
1596.918. (a) A licensed child day care facility shall
prohibit the use or possession of pushpins choking hazards,
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such as push pins, small toys, marbles, and other items
that measure less than 1.75 inches in diameter in any area
of the facility accessible to children 6 years of age or
younger.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Chris Reefe / HUM. S. / (916) 319-2089