| Today, State Senator Ceci Maher (D-Wilton), Senate Chair of the Committee on Children, led the Senate’s passage of legislation making Connecticut youth camps safer. The bill takes several steps to improve regulation of youth camps including increased inspections and improved state oversight.
“By keeping a focus on the current and future demands and needs for state youth camps, our state takes strong action today to ensure children’s safety,” said Sen. Maher. “Summer camps and youth camps help foster children’s education, growth and joy; these steps will better ensure that outcome remains the case for years to come.”
Senate Bill 215, “An Act Concerning Youth Camps,” includes requiring a second inspection of a newly licensed youth camp no later than 72 hours after it commences operations, with priority to single-week camps, and reduced priority to camps with national accreditations or those with no complaints or violations filed in the last five years. It also establishes a Youth Camp Safety Advisory Council within the Office of Early Childhood, and allows the state to refuse to license a camp that had its license revoked in another state.
State laws require the Office of Early Childhood to inspect camps before licensing them; adding a second inspection after the camp starts operating will provide additional oversight to ensure proper operations. Inspections focusing on initial applicants and single-week camps will also be a more rapid and effective oversight.
The Youth Camp Safety Advisory Council also will increase both safety of youth camps in the state as it ensures industry representatives and state leaders’ inputs on the needs of these camps.
The bill passed the Committee on Children by a 15-3 vote on March 12 and passed unanimously through the Senate today. It now heads to the House for further action.
Caption: Sen. Maher speaks on the Senate floor Wednesday. |
