Appendix A - Written Permission
When Children Are Transported
Appendix B - Licensed Center Vehicle
Requirements
(A)What is to be available on all trips,
including routine walking trips?
The center is to:
(1)Have written and signed permission from
the parent before transporting or escorting a child away from the center for
field trips and routine trips as detailed in appendix A to this rule. The
permission slips are to be kept on file at the center for one year from the
date of the trip.
(2)Attach to each child on a routine or
field trip, except children being transported only to and from school or to and
from home, identification containing the center's name, address, and a
telephone number to contact in the event the child becomes lost.
(3)Have a completed copy of the JFS 01234
"Child Enrollment and Health Information for Child Care" for each
child on the trip, except routine walks.
(4)Have first aid supplies as required by
rule 5101:2-12-16 of the Administrative Code.
(5)Have the completed JFS 01236 "Child
Medical/Physical Care Plan for Child Care" for any child who has a health
condition which could need medication, special procedures or precautions during
the course of the trip. The center is also to take supplies needed to provide
such treatment and medications that may need to be administered during the
trip.
(6)Have a working cellular phone or other
means of immediate communication. Cellular phones are not to be used by a driver
while the vehicle is in motion.
(7)Ensure that the child care staff member
responsible for each child on the field trip maintains a written record of
which vehicle each child is being transported in and the cellular phone number
of the adult in that vehicle who could be contacted in an emergency.
(8)Ensure that a person trained in
cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), first aid and management of communicable
disease in accordance with rule 5101:2-12-10 of the Administrative Code is
present in the vehicle for routine trips and field trips and at the destination
on all field trips. More than one person may be used to meet this requirement.
(9)Ensure that if the vehicle used to
transport children is manufactured with seat belts, they are to be utilized by
adults and children, no more than one person may be strapped in each seat belt.
Children or adults are not to be permitted to stand in a moving vehicle, sit on
the floor or ride in a vehicle where all seats are not securely anchored.
(10) Not leave children in the vehicle when it
is being refueled except when a trip is of such a length as to need refueling
after starting with a full tank.
(B)What are the ratio and supervision
requirements for trips, including routine walking trips?
(1)The staff/child ratio requirements of
rule 5101:2-12-18 of the Administrative Code are to be met on field trips and
routine trips. Children are to be assigned to specific child care staff members
for all field trips.
(2)Parents, guardians or adults authorized
by the center may be drivers on field trips as long as staff/child ratio
requirements are met at the destination.
(3)One additional adult is to be present in
the vehicle whenever five or more children are being transported and one or
more of the children are infants.
(4)One additional adult is to be present in
the vehicle when there are seven or more children being transported and no
infants are present.
(5)One additional adult is to be present in
the vehicle when there are ten or more school-age children, or the driver is to
have a means of immediate communication, such as a cellular phone, to summon an
additional adult when only school-age children are transported in one vehicle.
(6)The additional adult in the vehicle may
be the driver, parent or volunteer.
(7)The vehicle is to be checked at
completion of each trip to ensure that no child has been left on the vehicle.
(8)During routine walking trips or walking
field trips, one additional adult is to be present when there are five or more
infants or a combination of seven or more toddlers, preschool and school-age
children or for ten or more school-age children if the group of children on the
walking trip includes only school-age children.
(9)While children are being transported
from their homes or schools directly to the center or from the center directly
to their homes or schools, the children are not to count in the center's
capacity.
(C)What are the driver requirements for
employees and child care staff members of the center?
driver shall:
(1)The employee or child care staff member
driver is to:
(a)Be at least eighteen years old.
(b)Hold a currently valid driver's license
required for the type of vehicle driven in accordance with Ohio law.
(i)A copy of each driver's current
driver's license is to be kept on file at the center.
(ii)The center is responsible for ensuring
that the copy of the driver's license on file is kept current.
(c)Be free from the influence of any
substance which could impair driving abilities.
(d)Ensure that all passengers, which
includes the driver, adhere to the state of Ohio's child restraint law found in
section 4511.81 of the Revised Code when transporting children in care.
(e)Not allow children under twelve years of
age to ride in the front seat of any vehicle.
(f)See that each child safely boards and
exits the vehicle from the curb side of the street whenever physically possible
and out of the path of moving vehicles. Drop off or pick up at which it is not
possible to board and exit from the curb side is to be conducted in a safe
manner and with close supervision by the child care staff member responsible
for the children.
(g)Complete the Ohio department of job and
family services (ODJFS) child care transportation training in the Ohio
professional registry (OPR).
(i)A trained child care staff member is
not required in the vehicle on field trips when parents are providing the transportation.
(ii)A trained child care staff member is
not required when public transportation is being utilized or if the school district
is providing transportation to or from the center .
(h)Practice the emergency exiting
procedures.
(i)The emergency exiting procedures are
to be practiced with the children on a monthly basis.
(ii)This practice is to occur during months
that the vehicle is used for transporting children and is to take place on the
center's premises or another safe location that is protected from traffic and
other hazards to ensure the safety of the children involved.
(iii)A written record is to be kept of the dates
when the emergency exiting procedure was practiced and the staff that were
involved.
(2)Parents, who are not employed by the
center, who use their vehicles for transportation to occasional field trips do
not have to meet the requirements of paragraph (C) of this rule. For the
purposes of this rule, "occasional" means three or fewer times per
calendar year.
(3)The requirements outlined in paragraph
(C) of this rule do not apply to public transportation drivers or companies
contracted by the program and who are not employees or child care staff
members.
(4)Training for transportation is to be
documented in the OPR or kept on file at the center in the employee's or child
care staff member's file for review by the ODJFS.
(D)What are the vehicle requirements for
the center?
(1)Any vehicle operated by the center or
driven by an employee or child care staff member to transport children for
routine trips or field trips is to be mechanically safe at all times.
(2)Requirements for center vehicles used
for transportation of children are listed in appendix B to this rule.
(3)The personal vehicles driven by parents
who are not employed by the center are not required to meet the requirements of
paragraph (E) of this rule.
(E)When are vehicles used for transporting
children to be inspected?
The vehicles used for transporting
children are to be inspected weekly by child care center staff and annually by
an automotive service excellence (ASE) certified mechanic, federal motor
carrier safety administration (FMCSA) safety inspector, or the Ohio state
highway patrol.
(1)The center is to maintain documentation
that staff have performed weekly inspections followed by any necessary repairs
or other appropriate actions, for the following items:
(a)A visual inspection of the vehicle's
tires for wear and adequate pressure.
(b)A visual inspection for working
headlights and taillights, signals, mirrors, wiper blades and dash gauges.
(c)An inspection for properly functioning
child and driver restraints.
(d)An inspection for properly functioning
doors and windows.
(e)An inspection for, and cleaning of,
debris from the vehicle's interior.
(2)The annual safety check is to be
completed and approved prior to the use of any vehicle for transporting
children, except that a new vehicle purchased directly from the dealer is to
have the safety check completed before one year from the date of purchase. The bill
of sale from the vehicle purchase is to be maintained on file at the center to
verify compliance.
(a)Verification of the safety check is to
be documented on the JFS 01230 "Vehicle Inspection Report for Child
Care" and include notation and correction of any safety violation, and is
to be maintained on file at the center for review by the ODJFS.
(b)A vehicle sticker issued from the Ohio
state highway patrol indicating the vehicle has passed a school bus or personal
vehicle inspection may be used to meet the annual safety check requirement.
(c)School buses and multifunction school
activity buses which are inspected and licensed by the Ohio state highway
patrol are exempt from the annual safety check required in this rule. The
center is to prepare the buses before each trip following the Ohio department
of education's operational and safety rules of Chapter 3301-83 of the
Administrative Code.
Effective: 10/29/2021
Five Year Review (FYR) Dates: 10/29/2026
Certification: CERTIFIED ELECTRONICALLY
Date: 10/13/2021
Promulgated Under: 119.03
Statutory Authority: 5104.015
Rule Amplifies: 5104.015
Prior Effective Dates: 03/01/1981, 02/08/1982 (Emer.),
09/01/1986, 01/01/1990, 01/02/1992 (Emer.), 04/01/1992, 04/01/2003, 09/01/2005,
01/01/2007, 07/01/2010, 09/29/2011, 11/22/2015, 12/31/2016, 10/29/2017