HB175: HB175 Education; employee comprehensive background checks for early care and education programs and Head Start programs; revise provisions

Georgia law already requires background checks, including FBI fingerprint checks, for people working in licensed child care programs. This bill expands and clarifies those rules. It adds a formal legal definition of 'Head Start program' tied to the federal Head Start Act, and updates the definition of a 'comprehensive records check determination' to spell out exactly which criminal, sex offender, and child abuse registries the Department of Early Care and Learning must search. The bill also rewrites the process for how fingerprint results move between the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the FBI, and the department, and extends background check requirements explicitly to Head Start programs that receive federal funds through the department. Most significantly, it changes several places in the law from 'may revoke' or discretionary language to mandatory language, so the department must revoke or refuse to issue a license or commission when a program does not comply with background check requirements. The changes take effect July 1, 2025.

• Creates a formal legal definition of 'Head Start program', tying it to the federal Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. Section 9801 et seq.).
• Expands the background check requirement so it explicitly covers Head Start programs and other programs that receive federal child care funds through the department, not just early care and education programs.
• Changes the department's license revocation authority from discretionary ('may') to mandatory ('shall') when a program fails to comply with comprehensive background check rules.
• Requires the department to refuse to issue a license or commission to a program whose director or employee has not completed and passed the required background check.
• Clarifies the step-by-step process for how fingerprint and criminal history results are transmitted between the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the FBI, and the Department of Early Care and Learning.
• Keeps in place the misdemeanor penalty for a license holder, commission holder, or director who knowingly allows a disqualified person to work with or reside among children in care.

The bill affects current and prospective employees and directors of licensed early care and education programs and Head Start programs, the programs and license holders themselves, and the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, which conducts and enforces the background check requirements.

By making revocation mandatory instead of optional and explicitly covering Head Start programs, the bill removes discretion the department previously had, meaning noncompliant child care and Head Start programs would automatically face license revocation or denial rather than case by case review.

• Section 1 adds a new definition of 'Head Start program' to O.C.G.A. § 20-1A-2, referencing the federal Head Start Act.
• Section 2 revises the definition of 'comprehensive records check determination' in O.C.G.A. § 20-1A-30 to detail the specific registries and databases that must be searched.
• Section 3 revises O.C.G.A. § 20-1A-34(a) to extend fingerprint and records check procedures explicitly to Head Start programs and other federally funded child care programs.
• Section 4 revises O.C.G.A. § 20-1A-39, changing discretionary revocation language to mandatory revocation and mandatory refusal to issue licenses or commissions for noncompliant programs.
• Section 4 also retains the misdemeanor charge for knowingly allowing a disqualified employee or director to have contact with children in care.
• Section 5 sets the effective date as July 1, 2025.

1. 2025-05-13Effective Date 2025-07-01
2. 2025-05-13Act 175
3. 2025-05-13House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-07House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-03-27Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2025-03-27Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2025-03-18Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
8. 2025-03-13Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)

• Todd Jones (R, HD-025)Primary sponsor
• Chris Erwin (R, HD-032)
• Matt Dubnik (R, HD-029)
• David Wilkerson (D, HD-038)
• Katie Dempsey (R, HD-013)
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 4, 2025

   170 yea, 0 nay (5 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #176

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2025

   54 yea, 0 nay (2 not voting, 0 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #298

• child care licensing
• background checks
• Head Start programs
• early education
• criminal history checks