As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1)
(A) “Child Care Appeal Review Panel” or “panel” means an eleven-member body under the Department of Human Services which shall serve as a review and appeal body regarding licensure or registration actions.
(B)
(i) The panel shall consist of eleven (11) members, including the following:
(a) Three (3) early childhood professionals;
(b) One (1) pediatric health professional;
(c) One (1) parent of a child in a licensed early childhood program;
(d) The Director of the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education or his or her designee who shall serve as Chair of the Child Care Appeal Review Panel and shall not vote; and
(e) Five (5) licensed childcare providers representing a diversity of childcare settings.
(ii) Legal counsel from the Office of the Attorney General shall serve as a facilitator of the panel and shall not serve as a voting member.
(iii) Alternates shall be chosen to serve during times of absence or in cases of conflict of interest. Five (5) alternates shall be chosen as follows:
(a) One (1) early childhood professional;
(b) One (1) pediatric health professional;
(c) One (1) parent of a child in a licensed early childhood program; and
(d) Two (2) licensed childcare providers.
(iv) Members of the panel shall not be members of the Arkansas Early Childhood Commission.
(C)
(i) The commission, from applications submitted, shall make panel selections from persons meeting the qualifications for service and exhibiting a willingness and time commitment to serve on the panel.
(ii) Panel members may be replaced under the same guidelines as commission members.
(D)
(i) Members of the panel shall serve for three-year terms, not to exceed six (6) consecutive years of service on the panel.
(ii) Members from the Office of the Attorney General and the director shall hold permanent offices.
(E) Members of the panel shall receive no compensation other than normal state reimbursement for travel, meals, and lodging when applicable.
(F) The panel shall schedule monthly meetings and may meet more often as necessary.
(G) A majority of the panel shall constitute a quorum, and a majority of those present may decide any issue before the panel. In the event of a tie vote by the panel, the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education decision shall stand.
(H)
(i) Decisions of the panel shall be the final administrative appeal.
(ii) Providers or the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education may appeal the panel's findings to the circuit court of the licensee's county of residence or to the Pulaski County Circuit Court.
(I) There shall be no monetary liability on the part of and no cause of action for damages shall arise against any member of the panel for any act or proceeding undertaken or performed within the scope of the functions of the panel if the panel member acts without malice or fraud; and
(2)
(A)
(i) “Childcare facility” means any facility which provides care, training, education, or supervision for any unrelated minor child, whether or not the facility is operated for profit and whether or not the facility makes a charge for the services offered by it.
(ii) For the purposes of this subdivision (2), “related minor child” means a minor child related by blood, marriage, or adoption to the owner or operator of the facility or a minor child who is a ward of the owner or operator of the facility pursuant to a guardianship order issued by an Arkansas court of competent jurisdiction.
(B) This definition includes, but is not limited to, a nursery, a nursery school, a kindergarten, a daycare center, or a family daycare home.
(C) In any case where a facility or the owner or operator thereof is appointed guardian of a total of ten (10) or more minors, it shall be presumed that the facility, owner, or operator is engaged in child care and shall be subject to childcare facility licensure.
(D) However, this definition does not include:
(i) Special schools or classes operated solely for religious instruction;
(ii) Facilities operated in connection with a church, shopping center, business, or establishment where children are cared for during short periods of time while parents or persons in charge of the children are attending church services, shopping, or engaging in other activities during the periods;
(iii) Any educational facility, whether private or public, which operates solely for educational purposes in grades one (1) or above and does not provide any custodial care;
(iv) Kindergartens operated as a part of the public schools of this state;
(v) Any situation, arrangement, or agreement by which one (1) or more persons care for fewer than six (6) children from more than one (1) family at the same time;
(vi) Any educational facility, whether public or private, which operates a kindergarten program in conjunction with grades one (1) and above and provides short-term custodial care before or following classes for those students;
(vii)
(a) Any recreational facility or program, whether public or private, which operates solely as a place of recreation for minor children.
(b) For purposes of this subdivision (2), a “recreational facility or program” is defined as a facility or program which operates with children arriving and leaving voluntarily for scheduled classes, activities, practice, games, and meetings;
(viii) Any state-operated facility to house juvenile delinquents or any serious offender program facility operated by a state designee to house juvenile delinquents, foster home, group home, or custodial institution. Those facilities shall be subject to program requirements modeled on nationally recognized correctional and child welfare standards, which shall be developed, administered, and monitored by the Division of Youth Services; and
(ix) The Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts.
(3) [Repealed.]
(4) [Repealed.]
(5) [Repealed.]