{"data":{"id":"us-mt/52-2-704","jurisdiction":"us-mt","citation":"52-2-704","heading":"Duties of department.","body":"(1) The department is responsible for planning, implementing, and coordinating programs under the Montana Child Care Act.\n(2) The department shall:\n(a) assess child-care needs and resources within the state;\n(b) develop a state child-care plan;\n(c) coordinate child-care programs administered by all state agencies;\n(d) issue licenses to persons to receive children into a day-care center on a regular basis;\n(e) prescribe the conditions and publish minimum standards upon which licenses and registration certificates are issued;\n(f) adopt rules for day-care facilities consistent with the purposes of this part;\n(g) adopt rules for day-care centers that provide day care on an irregular basis, which includes exceptions regarding requirements for immunization records and staffing ratios; and\n(h) issue registration certificates to a person or persons to receive children into a family day-care home or group day-care home on a regular basis.\n(3) The department may:\n(a) enter into interagency agreements to administer and coordinate child-care programs;\n(b) accept any federal funds made available for the improvement or promotion of child-care services within the state;\n(c) administer any state and federal funds that may be appropriated for the purposes of the part; and\n(d) issue a license to a person to receive children into a day-care center on an irregular basis if the person chooses to apply for licensure.","path":["TITLE 52. FAMILY SERVICES","CHAPTER 2. CHILDREN'S SERVICES","Part 7. Child Care"],"source_url":"https://mca.legmt.gov/bills/mca/title_0520/chapter_0020/part_0070/section_0040/0520-0020-0070-0040.html","current_through":"Montana Code Annotated 2025","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T04:56:48Z","sha256":"92bfa0003174f7099951e97a9927d5588fb4363bbd255410d9af8a8325bf4a4f","source_id":"us-mt","stale":false,"prev":"us-mt/52-2-703","next":"us-mt/52-2-705"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}