Effective 28 Aug 2019

210.252. Fire, safety, health and sanitation inspections, procedure — variances to rules granted when — rules authorized. — 1. All buildings and premises used by a child-care facility to care for more than six children except those exempted from the licensing provisions of the department of health and senior services pursuant to subdivisions (1), (2), (3), and (5) of section 210.211, shall be inspected annually for fire and safety by the state fire marshal, the marshal's designee or officials of a local fire district and for health and sanitation by the department of health and senior services or officials of the local health department. Evidence of compliance with the inspections required by this section shall be kept on file and available to parents of children enrolling in the child-care facility.

2. Local inspection of child-care facilities may be accomplished if the standards employed by local personnel are substantially equivalent to state standards and local personnel are available for enforcement of such standards.

3. Any child-care facility may request a variance from a rule or regulation promulgated pursuant to this section. The request for a variance shall be made in writing to the department of health and senior services and shall include the reasons the facility is requesting the variance. The department shall approve any variance request that does not endanger the health or safety of the children served by the facility. The burden of proof at any appeal of a disapproval of a variance application shall be with the department of health and senior services. Local inspectors may grant a variance, subject to approval by the department.

4. The department of health and senior services shall administer the provisions of sections 210.252 to 210.256, with the cooperation of the state fire marshal, local fire departments and local health agencies.

5. The department of health and senior services shall promulgate rules and regulations to implement and administer the provisions of sections 210.252 to 210.256. Such rules and regulations shall provide for the protection of children in all child-care facilities whether or not such facility is subject to the licensing provisions of sections 210.201 to 210.245.

6. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term is defined in section 536.010, that is created under the authority delegated in sections 210.252 to 210.256 shall become effective only if it complies with and is subject to all of the provisions of chapter 536 and, if applicable, section 536.028. All rulemaking authority delegated prior to August 28, 1999, is of no force and effect and repealed. Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to repeal or affect the validity of any rule filed or adopted prior to August 28, 1999, if it fully complied with all applicable provisions of law. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and if any of the powers vested with the general assembly pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay the effective date or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking authority and any rule proposed or adopted after August 28, 1999, shall be invalid and void.

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(L. 1993 H.B. 376 § 1, A.L. 1999 H.B. 490 & H.B. 308, A.L. 2019 H.B. 397)