DCF 250.10 Additional requirements for night care.
DCF 250.11 Licensing administration.
DCF 250.12 Complaints, inspections and enforcement actions.
Ch. DCF 250 Note
Note: Chapter HSS 45 was renumbered chapter HFS 45 under s. 13.93 (2m) (b) 1., Stats., and corrections made under s. 13.93 (2m) (b) 6. and 7., Stats.,
Register, September, 1998, No. 513. Chapter HFS 45 as it existed on December 31, 2004, was repealed and a new Chapter HFS 45 was created, eff. 3-1-05. Chapter HFS 45 was renumbered to chapter DCF 250 under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 1., Stats.,
Register November 2008 No. 635.
DCF 250.01
DCF 250.01
Authority and purpose. This chapter is promulgated under the authority of s.
48.67, Stats., to carry out licensing requirements under s.
48.65, Stats., for family child care centers. The purpose of the chapter is to protect the health, safety and welfare of children being cared for in family child care centers.
DCF 250.01 History
History: CR 03-052: cr.
Register December 2004 No. 588, eff. 3-1-05.
DCF 250.02(1)(1)
Included and excluded care arrangements. This chapter applies to all family child care centers, but does not include any of the following:
DCF 250.02 Note
Note: Section
48.65 (2), Stats., exempts parents, guardians and certain other relatives; public and parochial (private) schools; persons employed to come to the home of the child's parent to provide care for less than 24 hours per day; and counties, cities, villages, towns, school districts, and libraries that provide programs for children primarily intended for social or recreational purposes from the requirement for a license.
DCF 250.02(1)(a)
(a) Care and supervision of children in a program that operates no more than 4 hours a week.
DCF 250.02(1)(b)
(b) Group lessons to develop a talent or skill, such as dance or music, social group meetings and activities and group athletic activities.
DCF 250.02(1)(c)
(c) Care and supervision while the parents are on the premises and are engaged in shopping, recreation or other non-work activities.
DCF 250.02(1)(d)
(d) Seasonal programs of 10 days or less duration in any 3-month period, including day camps, vacation bible school and holiday child care programs.
DCF 250.02(1)(f)
(f) Care and supervision while the parent is employed on the premises if the parent's child receives care and supervision for no more than 3 hours a day.
DCF 250.02(1)(g)
(g) Care and supervision provided at the site to the child of a recipient of temporary assistance to needy families, or Wisconsin works, who is involved in orientation, enrollment or initial assessment prior to the development of an employability plan or the child care is provided where parents are provided training or counseling.
DCF 250.02(2)
(2) Exception to the requirement. The department may grant an exception to a requirement of this chapter when a family child care center demonstrates to the satisfaction of the department that granting the exception will not jeopardize the health, safety or welfare of any child served by the center. A request for an exception shall be in writing, shall be sent to the department and shall include justification for the requested action and a description of any alternative provision planned to meet the intent of the pertinent provision in this chapter.
DCF 250.02 Note
Note: A request for an exception to a requirement of this chapter should be sent to the regional licensing representative of the Department's Division of Early Care and Education. See Appendix A for addresses of the regional offices.
DCF 250.02 History
History: CR 03-052: cr.
Register December 2004 No. 588, eff. 3-1-05.
DCF 250.03
DCF 250.03
Definitions. In this chapter:
DCF 250.03(1g)
(1g) “
Abusive head trauma” means a serious type of head injury, including shaken baby syndrome, that is caused by shaking, throwing, hitting, slamming, or jerking.
DCF 250.03(1r)
(1r) “Background check request form” means a form prescribed by the department on which a person completes required information for the child care background check under s.
48.686, Stats., and ch.
DCF 13.
DCF 250.03(2)
(2) “Care” means providing for the safety and developmental needs of a child in a family child care center.
DCF 250.03(3)
(3) “Center-provided transportation" means transportation in a vehicle owned by or contracted for the center or a vehicle owned by the licensee or an employee that is used to transport children, but does not include a vehicle owned and driven by a parent or volunteer.
DCF 250.03(4)
(4) “Complaint" means an allegation of violation of this chapter or ch.
48, Stats.
DCF 250.03(4m)
(4m) “Crib" means a bed for an infant or young child that is enclosed on 4 sides including play pens and portable cribs.
DCF 250.03(5)
(5) “Department" means the Wisconsin department of children and families.
DCF 250.03(5m)
(5m) “
Early childhood education” means the teaching of children who are 8 years of age or less.
DCF 250.03(6)
(6) “Emergency” means unforeseen circumstances that require immediate attention.
DCF 250.03(7)
(7) “Emergency back-up provider" means a designated adult available within 5 minutes of the premises who can provide assistance in the event an emergency occurs that requires a provider to leave the premises occasionally for a short period of time.
DCF 250.03(8)
(8) “Employee" means any adult who is compensated to provide care and supervision of children enrolled in a family child care center, including a helper or assistant to a child care provider.
DCF 250.03(8m)
(8m) “EPSDT provider" means a provider of health assessment and evaluation services that is eligible to be certified under s.
DHS 105.37 (1) (a).
DCF 250.03(9)
(9) “Family child care center" or “center" means a facility where a person provides care and supervision for less than 24 hours a day for at least 4 and not more than 8 children who are not related to the provider.
DCF 250.03(10)
(10) “Field trip" means any experience a child has away from the premises of the center while in the care of center staff, whether a child walks or is transported.
DCF 250.03(11)
(11) “Fit and qualified" means displaying the capacity to successfully nurture and care for children and may include consideration of any of the following:
DCF 250.03(11)(b)
(b) A history of a civil or criminal conviction or administrative rule violation that is substantially related to the care of children, as determined under s.
DCF 13.05.
DCF 250.03(11)(d)
(d) A history of civil or criminal offenses or any other action that demonstrates an inability to manage the activities of a center.
DCF 250.03(12)
(12) “Foster care" means care and maintenance provided to a child in a foster home pursuant to a court order or voluntary placement agreement.
DCF 250.03(13m)
(13m) “Hazard" means a potential source of harm that can jeopardize the health, safety or well-being of a child in care.
DCF 250.03(14)
(14) “
Hours of operation” means the hours within the terms of the license during which children are actually in the care of the center.
DCF 250.03(14m)
(14m) “Household member" means any person who resides, or is expected to reside, at the family child care center and who has or may have direct contact with a child in the care of the center, whether or not related to the licensee.
DCF 250.03(15)
(15) “Inclement weather" means stormy or severe weather such as any of the following:
DCF 250.03(15)(c)
(c) Wind chills of 0 degrees Fahrenheit or below for children age 2 and above.
DCF 250.03(15)(d)
(d) Wind chills of 20 degrees Fahrenheit or below for children under age 2.
DCF 250.03(17)
(17) “In care” means the center is providing supervision, either on or off the premises, including during center-provided transportation, for the safety and the developmental needs of the child or children.
DCF 250.03(17m)
(17m) “
Licensed hours” means the authorized hours specified on the license certificate and letter of transmittal within which the center may provide care.
DCF 250.03(18)
(18) “Licensee” means the individual that has the legal and fiscal responsibility for the operation of a center and for meeting the requirements of this chapter.
DCF 250.03(19)
(19) “Licensing representative" means a department employee responsible for licensing family child care centers.
DCF 250.03(21)
(21) “Night care” means any care that is offered by a licensed family child care center between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m.
DCF 250.03(23)
(23) “Physical restraint" means the use of physical force to restrict the free movement of all or a portion of a child's body.
DCF 250.03(26)
(26) “Premises” means the tract of land on which the center is located, including all buildings and structures on that land.
DCF 250.03(26m)
(26m) “
Program aide” means a person who works under the supervision of a provider and assists with daily activities and maintenance of the program, such as preparing and participating in program activities and cleaning the premises.
DCF 250.03(27)
(27) “Provider” means an adult who has met the requirements specified in s.
DCF 250.05 (3) in a family child care center and who provides care and supervision of the children in care of the center.
DCF 250.03(28)
(28) “Provider's own children" means a provider's natural or adopted children, foster children, stepchildren, or other children who reside in the family child care center.
DCF 250.03(29)
(29) “Representative of the department" means a department employee or a representative from an agency the department contracts with to provide pre-licensing services.
DCF 250.03(30)
(30) “School-age child" means a child 5 years of age or older who is enrolled in a public or private school.
DCF 250.03(30m)
(30m) “Shaken baby syndrome" or “SBS" means a severe form of brain injury that occurs when an infant or young child is shaken or thrown forcibly enough to cause the brain to rebound against his or her skull.
DCF 250.03(31)
(31) “Sleeping bag" means a padded fabric bag that is closed or capable of being closed on 3 sides.
DCF 250.03(32)
(32) “Substitute" means a provider who replaces another provider on a pre-arranged basis.
DCF 250.03(33)
(33) “Sudden infant death syndrome" or “SIDS" means the sudden death of an infant under one year of age that remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation, including performance of a complete autopsy, examination of the death scene and a review of the clinical history.
DCF 250.03(35)
(35) “Toddler" means a child at least one year of age but less than 2 years of age.
DCF 250.03(36)
(36) “Universal precautions" means measures taken to prevent transmission of infection from contact with blood or other potentially infectious material, as recommended by the U.S. public health service's centers for disease control and adopted by the U.S. occupational safety and health administration (OSHA) as
29 CFR 1910.1030.
DCF 250.03 Note
Note: “Standard precautions" for infection control measures incorporate universal precautions. Information on the OSHA requirements related to standard or universal precautions is available on the OSHA web site at
http://www.osha.gov. Information is also available from the Child Care Information Center, 1-800-362-7353.
DCF 250.03(37)
(37) “Volunteer" means a person who is not paid, but who agrees to give time, with or without reimbursement for expenses, to transport children attending a family child care center or to work in a family child care center.
DCF 250.03(38)
(38) “Wading pool" means a shallow pool, with sides of 15 inches or less in height, capable of being dumped to change water and used primarily for small children.
DCF 250.03 History
History: CR 03-052: cr.
Register December 2004 No. 588, eff. 3-1-05; corrections in (2), (5), (11) (b), (14), (20) and (34) made under s.
13.92 (4) (b) 6. and
7., Stats.,
Register November 2008 No. 635;
CR 07-102: cr. (4m), (11) (d), (13m), (14m) and (30m), am. (10), (11) (intro.), (15) (b) to (d), (18), (27), (28), (34) and (37)
Register December 2008 No. 636, eff. 1-1-09; corrections in (27) and (34) made under s.
13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats.,
Register December 2008 No. 636;
CR 10-148: am. (13)
Register August 2011 No. 668, eff. 9-1-11; correction in (2), (11) (b) made under s.
13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats.,
Register September 2016 No. 729;
EmR1918: emerg. r. and recr. (1), (2), cr. (3m), (5m), r. and recr. (6), am. (11) (b), (17), cr. (17m), am. (18), r. (20), am. (21), (27), (34), eff. 1-30-19;
CR 19-089: r. and recr. (1), (2), cr. (3m), (5m), r. and recr. (6), am. (11) (b), (17), cr. (17m), am. (18), r. (20), am. (21), (27), (34)
Register March 2020 No. 771, eff. 4-1-20, except (18), eff. 4-1-20 and 10-1-21;
CR 20-003: renum. (14) to (8m) and am.
Register July 2020 No. 775, eff. 8-1-20;
CR 21-100: renum. (1) to (1r), cr. (1g), (14), am. (17), cr. (26m), am. (34)
Register February 2023 No. 806, eff. 3-1-23; correction in (25) made under s.
13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats.,
Register February 2023 No. 806.
DCF 250.04(1)(a)(a) The number of children in the care of a family child care center at any time may not exceed the number for which the center is licensed.
DCF 250.04 Note
Note: Denying admission on the basis of race, disability, religion, or certain other characteristics may be illegal under the state public accommodations law, federal law related to the use of federal funding, and some local anti-discrimination ordinances.
DCF 250.04(1)(b)
(b) The age of children served by a center may not be younger or older than the age range specified in the license issued.
DCF 250.04(1)(c)
(c) The hours, days and months of a center's operation may not exceed those specified in the license.
DCF 250.04(2)
(2) Administration. A licensee shall do all of the following:
DCF 250.04(2)(a)
(a) Comply with all laws governing the facility and its operation.
DCF 250.04 Note
Note: Denying admission on the basis of race, disability, religion, or certain other characteristics may be illegal under the state public accommodations law, federal law related to the use of federal funding, and some local anti-discrimination ordinances.
