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Greetings,
This edition of the Certification enews brings an update about the Safe Drinking Water Act and regulations. Watch for a letter in your mail from DEP, asking for information about where your facility obtains its tap water and see below for more info.
There's also a great resource from the Ounce of Prevention Fund and the U.S. Department of Human Services Administration for Children and Families to help those families experiencing homelessness.
Check out the other articles below to keep you updated about what's trending in certification!
Pennsylvania's future is stronger because of your dedication and commitment to the health, safety and education of young children.
Thank you,
Tanya Vasquez, Director
OCDEL Bureau of Certification
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Updated: Safe Drinking Water Act & Regulations
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is responsible for implementing the Safe Drinking Water Act and associated Safe Drinking Water regulations (25 Pa. Code, Chapter 109).
The Safe Drinking Water Act and regulations define a public water system as a system that provides water to the public for human consumption, and which has at least 15 service connections or regularly serves an average of at least 25 individuals daily at least 60 days out of the year.
Generally, if a building is supplied tap water by a water company or municipal authority without further treating the water, then the building does not meet the definition of a public water system. The entity providing water to the building is the regulated public water system.
However, if a building is supplied water from an on-site well or spring or other source of water and the building regularly provides water for human consumption to an average of at least 25 individuals daily at least 60 days out of the year, the building is regulated as a public water system.
PA's Chapter 109 Safe Drinking Water regulations are based on the federal Safe Drinking Water Act and regulations. These regulations establish national limits on contaminant levels in drinking water to ensure the water is safe for human consumption. The regulations then specify testing frequencies for the contaminants as well as establish requirements for operation and maintenance of the public drinking water system components.
Currently, Pennsylvania has approximately 8,500 public water systems. About 2,000 of these systems are community water systems; that is systems that serve residential areas such as cities, towns, sub-developments, and manufactured housing communities. The other 6,500 public water systems are non-residential systems. Facilities such as schools, restaurants, campgrounds, businesses with 25 or more employees, places of worship, and childcares. Again, any facility supplied by an on-site water supply such as a well that provides water for consumption to an average of at least 25 individuals daily at least 60 days out of the year.
As a certified DHS child care facility, over the next year you will receive a letter and survey from DEP asking for information about where your facility obtains its tap water. You should complete the survey to the best of your ability and return it to the return address provided by DEP. If DEP needs more information, they will follow up with you including potentially a site visit. If your facility meets the definition of a public water system you will need to work with DEP to comply with the Safe Drinking Water regulations. Failure to return the survey could/may affect your next DHS license renewal.
For more information on the definition of a public water system, please refer the DEP Fact Sheet, Identifying Public Water Systems.
For more information on public water system requirements, please visit the DEP Bureau of Safe Drinking Water website.
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Self-Assessment Tool for Early Childhood Programs Serving Families Experiencing Homelessness
The Ounce of Prevention Fund (the Ounce) and the U.S. Department of Human Services Administration for Children and Families (ACF) have released, Self-Assessment Tool for Early Childhood Programs Serving Families Experiencing Homelessness.
This Self-Assessment Tool for Early Childhood Programs Serving Families Experiencing Homelessness has been specifically designed for child care, Head Start and Early Head Start, and public pre-k programs as a guide for welcoming and supporting families and children experiencing homelessness into these programs. Early care and education providers play a critical role in identifying and supporting families with young children who are experiencing homelessness and connecting those families to other resources within their community. Being exposed to a safe, stable, and developmentally appropriate environment while young is important to healthy child development.
This tool contains recommendations for making early childhood programs more responsive to the unique needs of infants, toddlers, preschoolers and their families who experience homelessness in five areas: Identification and Support; Removal of Barriers; Responding to Family Needs; Engagement in Strategic Collaboration; and Improving Collection, Reporting and Utilization of Data. The tool includes additional resources to support programs.
If you have questions or require assistance, email either Carie Bires at cbires@theounce.org or Marsha Basloe at Marsha.Basloe@acf.hhs.gov.
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Now is the Time to Complete the New Health & Safety Training Requirements!
Free online training is available now for nine of 10 required topics.
One new requirement of the federal Child Care Development Block Grant is for all child care directors and staff to complete training on 10 health and safety topics by September 30, 2017. Please see
OCDEL's Announcement for more information.
- Take a free, six-hour "Health & Safety Basics: Requirements for Certification" course online through Better Kid Care or in person through the Regional Key, or provide transcript of courses already taken that meet the requirements.
AND
- Must take face-to-face Pediatric First Aid and CPR training.
Child care certification representatives are checking professional development records for these topics as part of inspections and new providers must complete pre-service training on the 10 topics before submitting an application.
Visit the PA Key website or contact your Regional OCDEL Certification Office for more details.
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The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning supports families
and their children, from prenatal through school age, by using data, research and
stakeholder guidance to assure high quality services.
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