Montana

Staff-child ratios (centers)

Requirements

Annual training

No fixed statewide clock-hour total in the rule: directors, teachers, and assistant teachers must complete the annual training required to stay current on the Montana ECP Practitioner Registry (ARM 37.95.162). Teachers at school-age-only facilities need at least 8 hours of continuing education annually; a health-and-safety review course is required at least every 3 years, and CPR/first aid certification within 30 days of hire (ARM 37.95.163).

Lead teacher

An early childhood lead teacher (ECLT) must be at least 18, current on the ECP Practitioner Registry, hold CPR/first aid certification, complete teacher orientation, and have either two years' experience in an early childhood program plus 32 hours of ECP training, or ECP Registry level 2 or higher (ARM 37.95.622).

Director

Directors must be at least 18, current on the ECP Registry, complete teacher orientation, and qualify via ECP Registry level 4+; level 3 plus 2 years' experience; level 2 plus 3 years; or a bachelor's degree plus 120 hours of approved training; plus a program management essentials course within 60 days (ARM 37.95.624).

Worth knowing

Montana's ratio bands are 0–23 months (1:4, group 12), 2–3 years (1:8, group 16), 4 years (1:10, group 24), 5+ (1:14, group 32); although 'toddler' is defined as 19–36 months, children 19–23 months count in the 0–23-month band. Mixed groups follow the youngest child. DPHHS rulebook version reviewed: rev. 12/21.

Compliance

Background checks

ARM 37.95.161 requires, before working in a child care facility: a Montana Department of Justice and FBI fingerprint background check (repeated every five years), Montana and NCIC national sex-offender registry checks (repeated annually), a child protective services check for Montana and every state of residence in the preceding five years (annually), and name-based criminal record checks for those states (annually); satisfactory results are required before application or staff approval.

Mandated reporting

Yes — ARM 37.95.171 requires the director, assistant director, or any staff member who suspects a child is or has been abused or neglected to personally report to the state child abuse hotline within 24 hours, and every facility must have a shaken-baby/abusive-head-trauma policy incorporating this mandatory reporting (ARM 37.95.169).

First aid & CPR

Every director, teacher, assistant teacher, and substitute must obtain current infant, child, and adult CPR (hands-on, not online-only), infant choking response, and pediatric first aid certification within 30 days of hire and before providing unsupervised care (ARM 37.95.163(2)), with verification kept in staff records (ARM 37.95.160).

Health & safety training

Under ARM 37.95.163, directors, early childhood teachers, assistant teachers, and substitutes must finish department-approved orientation: within 30 days of hire (and before unsupervised care) hands-on infant/child/adult CPR, infant choking response, pediatric first aid, safe sleep/SIDS, and shaken baby/abusive head trauma training, and within 90 days the CCDBG health-safety topics (infectious disease, medication, allergies, building safety, emergency preparedness, hazardous materials, transportation, abuse reporting, child development); ARM 37.95.162 requires annual training to stay current on the Montana ECP Practitioner Registry plus a health-and-safety review course at least every three years.

Operations

Supervision rule

Children must be supervised at all times, with the provider, director, and all early childhood teachers responsible for direct care, protection, supervision, and guidance through active involvement or direct observation (ARM 37.95.172); infants sleep on their backs in cribs/playpens with an early childhood teacher remaining with children sleeping on cots or mats (ARM 37.95.1005), and the emergency consent form must accompany staff whenever children are away from the site (ARM 37.95.141).

Record-keeping

ARM 37.95.141 requires daily attendance records, a master list of children and parents, medication administration logs, pre-enrollment files signed by parents (special needs/allergies, pickup authorization, medical forms with updated immunization records, emergency contacts and consent), emergency drill records, and incident/injury reports with parent notification and signed copies in the child's file; directors also keep staff records with CPR/first aid verification, background-check releases, health statements, and policy acknowledgements (ARM 37.95.160), and the department must have access to all records whenever children are in care (ARM 37.95.155).

Inspections

All licensed or registered programs receive a pre-inspection before providing care, ongoing monitoring, and an annual inspection, with complaints followed up; centers also need annual approved fire marshal and public health inspections before a regular license is granted (ARM 37.95.106), and DPHHS publishes a licensed provider search with inspection results.

Worth knowing: The Montana ARM website (rules.mt.gov) blocks automated access, so rule text comes from the DPHHS 'Licensing Requirements for Child Care Centers' rulebook (Rev. 12/21) plus the live DPHHS licensing page; facility-size thresholds quoted (family 3-8, group 9-15, center 16+) are from the live page, which reflects amendments newer than the rulebook. Confirm current ARM text before print citation.

Family & home child care

Mont. Code Ann. 52-2-703; Administrative Rules of Montana, Title 37, chapter 95 (ARM 37.95)

Family day-care home (registered; 3 to 8 children)

A private residence providing day care to 3 to 8 children on a regular basis (MCA 52-2-703). The count includes the provider's own children under 6 who are present during care hours; the provider's own children age 6+ attending school full-time are excluded (ARM 37.95.105). Up to 2 additional school-age children may be served during department-approved overlap periods.No more than 3 children under age 2 at any time; a home caring exclusively for under-2s may have up to 4 (ARM 37.95.102 and 37.95.702).

Group day-care home (registered; 9 to 15 children)

A private residence or other structure providing day care to 9 to 15 children on a regular basis (MCA 52-2-703). At least 2 caregivers must be caring for the children whenever more than 8 children are present (ARM 37.95.702).No more than 6 children under age 2 at any time; if caring exclusively for under-2s, no more than 4 unless there are 2 caregivers (ARM 37.95.702).

Provider training

Annual training as required to remain current on Montana's ECP Practitioner Registry, approved through MTECP (ARM 37.95.162); the rule sets no fixed statewide clock-hour number except that staff at school-age-only facilities must complete at least 8 hours of continuing education annually, plus a health-and-safety review course at least every 3 years.

Worth knowing

Montana registers (rather than licenses) family and group day-care homes; providing supplemental parental care to 3 or more children triggers the registration requirement (ARM 37.95.104). Capacities reflect MCA 52-2-703 as amended (family 3-8, group 9-15); some DPHHS rule text still references the older 12-child group figure in overlap provisions.