Day-care licensing has never been an easy sell at the Idaho Legislature.
Not in 1987, when Idaho finally joined 49 other states in passing a state law.
And not this year, as advocates have made surprising headway at tightening the law.
A day-care bill has passed the Senate on a 30-5 vote. A House committee gave the bill unanimous approval, although the committee wants an amended and less restrictive bill. Still, after years of gridlock, a rewrite is closer than ever to passage.
The fact that the idea has gotten this far reflects a significant - and encouraging - change in legislative mindset.
The day-care debate has been steeped in social overtones: the pros and cons of having both parents in the workplace versus the benefits of keeping young children at home. This year, lawmakers have focused on writing a better law. Day-care licensing is first and foremost a matter of keeping children safe - and providing working parents a tool that helps them choose quality care.
This has never been more the case than it is today. In a time of rising unemployment - and underemployment - many parents are forced to take on extra work hours. Layoff victims are going back to college to learn new job skills. For single parents, of course, child care has never been a luxury - only a necessity, and particularly in difficult times.
Parents have an obligation to check out day-care centers for themselves; licensing doesn't change that. But parents should reasonably expect a license to mean something. The current law, covering only day-care centers with 13 or more children, does very little to help parents make informed choices.
Even with the proposed House amendments, this bill moves in the right direction. Licensing, including fire and safety inspections, would be required of all day-care centers with seven or more children. Criminal background checks would be required of anyone caring for four or more children.
This isn't a perfect bill. The Department of Health and Welfare would enforce background check requirements - but only after a parent asks about a day-care employee's status. Meanwhile, some people are concerned that tobacco alcohol and firearms restrictions could apply to friends or relatives who stop by a center, and who don't provide care for kids. And the entire bill is subject to House-Senate negotiation.