ATLANTA (AP) - Changes are coming to child care centers across Georgia that officials say will improve child safety.
Legislation passed by the General Assembly in recent weeks calls for every employee of the state's roughly 6,300 licensed child care facilities to undergo a comprehensive, fingerprint-based background check. The bill is aimed at preventing those with a prior felony conviction from working around children. Gov. Nathan Deal is expected to sign the bill into law.
Current law requires only the director of a child care facility to pass the more comprehensive check. Under the legislation, all employees will have to pass the check before being eligible to work at a licensed child care facility in the state.
Republican Rep. Allen Peake of Macon sponsored the bill and calls it a "public safety issue."
