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October 10, 2022 CERTIFIED MAIL Shannon Rooney 6101 Dupont Avenue North Brooklyn Center, MN 55430 License Number 1074787 FCC ORDER OF CONDITIONAL LICENSE ORDER TO PAY A FINE Dear Ms. Rooney: Based on the recommendation received from Hennepin County Human Services and Public Health Department (Hennepin County), the Department of Human Services (DHS) is placing your license to provide family child care at 6101 Dupont Avenue, Brooklyn Center, MN on conditional status for one year beginning October 10, 2022. This means you must meet certain conditions to maintain your license, detailed below. This order is based on your level of noncompliance with family child care licensing requirements. Our next steps and your options are also provided below. In addition, DHS is ordering you to pay a fine of $200. Details of our findings are provided below. REASON FOR THE CONDITIONAL LICENSE 1. Commissioner’s evaluation of program In determining whether a licensing action is warranted, DHS evaluated the facts, conditions, and circumstances concerning your program’s operation. This includes consideration of the well-being of children in your program, available evaluations from consumers of your program, and information about the qualifications of caregivers working in your program. Specifically, because you failed to ensure that hazards were inaccessible to children in your outdoor play space, because you failed to follow sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) reduction requirements when sleeping an infant, because you failed to submit documentation of required training, because you failed to submit documentation of storm drills, because you failed to ensure that children had clean bedding, because you failed to provide documentation of crib safety inspection, and because you failed to follow disinfecting procedures when changing a diaper. DHS has determined that it is appropriate to place your license on conditional status based on the violations identified below and the program evaluation. Legal Authority: Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.04, subdivision 6. 2. Failure to comply with licensing laws and rules As a result of previous licensing visits, Hennepin County determined that your program failed to comply with the laws and rules for licensed family child care. DHS has considered the nature, chronicity, and severity of these violations, which are provided below. Legal Authority: Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 1. Nature, history and severity of violations The following violations summarize the nature of your licensing violations. Because these violations are now conclusive, the individual violations are not within the scope of your appeal rights. Please refer to the previously issued correction orders for further details on these violations. If you do not have copies of these orders, contact your Hennepin County licensor for assistance. DHS also considered this history as a factor when it determined that a conditional license appropriate. · May 5, 2022, Correction Order which cited you for failure to ensure your outdoor play space was free of hazards when your fence was broken and leaning over. You also had multiple piles of dog feces in your indoor play area. · May 3, 2022, Correction Order which cited the following licensing violations: o You failed to ensure that your program was clean and sanitary when there was excess dirt around the floor of the toilet, and the windowsill in the infant room was observed with dead bugs. o You failed to ensure hazards were inaccessible to children in care when a latex balloon was observed in the play area. o You failed to provide clean bedding for each child when an infant’s bedding was dirty and soiled. Also a crib spindle had what appeared to be feces on it. o You failed to disinfect the diaper changing surface after each use. o You failed to provide documentation of monthly storm drills as required. o You failed to provide documentation of current cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid training. o You failed to ensure that a caregiver had current training on sudden unexpected infant death (SUID) and abusive head trauma (AHT). o You failed to ensure that a caregiver had current CPR training. o You failed to ensure that a caregiver had 16 hours of annual training. o You failed to ensure that you and a caregiver completed active supervision training. o You failed to ensure that you and a caregiver completed Health and Safety training. o You failed to provide documentation of annual crib checks. o You failed to provide documentation of monthly crib safety inspections for mesh or rigid sided cribs. o You failed to remove a crib with a hole in the mesh siding that was accessible to children in care. o You failed to ensure that a crib mattress that had been replaced was firm and not more than one inch thick. Additionally, you failed to follow SUID reduction requirements when you were sleeping an infant in a crib with a mattress that did not meet crib safety standards. · October 21, 2020, Correction Order, which cited the following licensing violations: o Failure to provide documentation on your written emergency plan. o Failure to provide documentation of annual crib safety checks. o Failure to provide documentation of monthly crib safety checks. o Failure to ensure your smoke alarm meet safety requirements. · July 11, 2019, Conditional License, which cited the following licensing violations: o Failure to follow SUID requirements when sleeping an infant. o Failure to complete training on the following topics: § SUID reduction requirements training. § AHT training. § Child development and learning and behavior guidance training. § Supervising for Safety training. § 16 hours of annual training. § CPR training. § First aid training. o Failure to comply with a correction order. · August 9, 2019, Order to Pay a Fine of $200 for failure to complete training and failure to comply with prior correction orders. · May 12, 2017, Order to Pay a Fine of $200 for failure to follow SUID reduction requirements when an infant was sleeping in a car seat and was wearing a snowsuit. Severity of violations Due to the serious and chronic nature of these violations, and the conditions in the program, which impact the health and safety of children in your care, your license to provide family child care is placed on a conditional status. Conditional License Terms In addition to the licensing rules and statutes for family child care, you are required to comply with the following terms: 1. You follow and comply with all applicable Minnesota Rules and Laws. 2. No variances to age distribution or capacity will be granted during the conditional period. 3. You must submit and comply with a plan for how you will only use approved sleep equipment for children in care. You must complete crib safety inspections on a monthly basis and submit them to Hennepin County by the 5th of the month starting November 5, 2022. 4. You must submit documentation of all passed due training to Hennepin County within 30 day of this order. 5. You must work with Hennepin County to obtain a mentor to work on rule compliance including record compliance and to ensure that your program is sanitary and safe. The mentor must be obtained within 30 days of the issuance of this order. Upon completion of working with the mentor you must submit a summary to Hennepin County of what you learned and changes you will implement into your program to support a healthy and safe environment. 6. You must either provide a copy of the Order to Pay a Fine and Order of Conditional License to parents of children in care or document that all parents have been given an opportunity to review the Order. You must obtain parent signatures of each currently enrolled child, indicating they have either received a copy of the order or had an opportunity to review the order. You must provide this documentation to Hennepin County by October 31, 2022. For new families, you must submit documentation of compliance with this term to Hennepin County within 5 days of any child’s admission to your child care program Ongoing Monitoring Your Hennepin County licensor will monitor your compliance with these terms and with all of the family child care rules and laws. This will include unannounced visits. If you fail to demonstrate substantial compliance with family child care requirements or with the terms of your conditional license that are provided above, DHS may take an additional licensing sanction, including a revocation of your license. REASON FOR FINE Failure to Comply with Correction Order On May 3, 2022, Hennepin County made a visit to your family child care program. As a result of the visit, it was determined that you failed to follow SUID reduction requirements when you were sleeping an infant in a crib with an unapproved replacement mattress. Statute Violated: Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.1435, b. Fine: $200 Total Fine Amount $200 YOUR APPEAL/RECONSIDERATION RIGHTS If You Wish to Appeal the Fine and the Conditional License, or Just the Fine You have the right to appeal both the fine and the conditional license, or only the fine. Your request must be in writing and clearly state that you are requesting a contested case hearing for this matter. Your request must be made before the deadlines provided below. If you do not meet this deadline, you lose your right to an administrative appeal. The timeline to appeal began when you received this order. If you are mailing your request, it must be sent by certified mail and postmarked within 10 calendar days from when you receive this order. Please send it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Licensing Division Attention: Legal Unit PO Box 64242 St. Paul, MN 55164-0242 If your request is being personally delivered, it must be received by DHS within 10 calendar days from when you receive this order. Please bring it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Licensing Division Attention: Legal Unit 444 Lafayette Road North St. Paul, MN 55155 Upon DHS’ receipt of your timely appeal, your case would be scheduled for a contested case hearing in front of an Administrative Law Judge. Following this hearing, the Commissioner of DHS will issue a final order. If You Wish to Only Appeal the Conditional License If you are not appealing the fine, you do not have a right to a contested case hearing. However, you have the right to request reconsideration of the conditional license and the cited violations. Your request must: · Be in writing · Clearly state that you are requesting reconsideration of the conditional license · List each citation you are challenging and identify what is inaccurate or incomplete about the information in the order · Supply information that is accurate or more complete · State why you believe your license should not be on a conditional status · Be made before the deadlines provided below If you are mailing your request, it must be sent by certified mail and postmarked within 10 calendar days from when you received this order. If you do not meet this deadline, you lose your right to request reconsideration. The timeline to appeal began when you received this order. Please send it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Licensing Division Attention: Legal Unit PO Box 64242 St. Paul, MN 55164-0242 If your request is being personally delivered, it must be received by DHS within 10 calendar days from when you received this order. Please bring it to: Commissioner, Department of Human Services Office of Inspector General Licensing Division Attention: Legal Unit 444 Lafayette Road North St. Paul, MN 55155 Billing and Payment of the Fine DHS will send you an invoice for the $200 fine. Payment must be made as directed on the invoice. If you request a contested case hearing, as described above, do not pay the fine at this time. Following the contested case hearing, the Commissioner of DHS will issue a final order on this matter. Please note, you may not avoid payment of this fine by closing, selling, or otherwise transferring the license to a third party. If this occurs, you are personally responsible for payment. If you do not pay the fine on or before the date specified on the invoice and you did not request a contested case hearing, as described above, the Commissioner may issue a second fine, may not issue or reissue a license, or may suspend the license until the license holder pays the fine. Conditional license stayed pending reconsideration If you request reconsideration within the timeframes described above, the terms of the conditional license will not take effect until a decision is issued by DHS. If the conditional license is affirmed on reconsideration, the terms would take effect on the date of the reconsideration decision, and run for one year from that date. You continue to be required to comply with all family child care laws and rules. Legal representation at the contested case hearing You do not need a lawyer to appeal. However, a lawyer can help you with your appeal. The state or county will not get you a lawyer and will not pay for a lawyer. If you cannot afford a lawyer, you may be able to get free legal advice or help with your appeal. To find out if free help is available, contact: Volunteer Lawyers Network at 612-752-6677; Central Minnesota Legal Services at 612-332-8151; Southern Minnesota Legal Services at 651-222-4731; or go to www.lawhelpmn.org to find a local legal services program that may be able to help you. You can also find information on contested cases from the Office of Administrative Hearings website at https://mn.gov/oah/self-help. Click on Administrative Law Overview, then click on Administrative Law Contested Case Hearing Guide for a list of frequently asked questions. Prohibition against providing legally unlicensed child care As a result of this order, you are prohibited from providing legally unlicensed child care. A child care provider who has received a conditional license and/or an order to pay a fine that has not been reversed on reconsideration or appeal may not provide legally unlicensed child care to non-relatives. Operating a prohibited unlicensed family child care program is a misdemeanor offense. Posting of this licensing action You are required to place this Order to Pay a Fine and Order of Conditional License in a place that is clearly noticeable to the people receiving services and all visitors to the facility for two years, even if you appeal. Legal authority for this licensing action · The timeline to request reconsideration of the order is provided in Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 4. · Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.03, subdivision 2a provides that an applicant for licensure who has received a conditional license order that has not been reversed on appeal may not operate as a legally unlicensed child care provider. Operating an unlicensed family child care is a misdemeanor under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.03, subdivision 3. · The requirement to post this order in a clearly visible location is required under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 8. · If a license holder files a timely reconsideration request, the terms of the conditional license are stayed pending a decision by DHS under Minnesota Statutes, section 245A.06, subdivision 4. · Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 245A.03, subdivision 2b, subdivision 1 states that a child care provider who has received a Fine Order under Minnesota Statutes, Section 245A.07 that has not been reversed on appeal may not provide unlicensed child care to non-relatives. · Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 245A.03, subdivision 2b, subdivision 1 states that a child care provider who has received a a fine order and/or a conditional license under Minnesota Statutes, Section 245A.06 that has not been reversed on reconsideration or appeal may not provide unlicensed child care to non-relatives. · Operating a prohibited unlicensed family child care program is a misdemeanor offense under Minnesota Statutes, Section 245A.03, subdivision 3. Questions If you have any further questions regarding this matter, you may contact Beth Donahue, Supervisor at 651-431-6565. Sincerely,
Barbara Wagner, Unit Manager Licensing Division Office of Inspector General cc: Courtney Lovgren, Hennepin County Human Services and Public Health Department
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