Prince George's County Child Care Improvement Work Group Meeting – October 28, 2026

On Wednesday, October 28, 2026, at 2:03 p.m., the Prince George's County Child Care Improvement Work Group met virtually. Dr. Run Perakan, director of the education workforce development committee, convened the meeting; Chair Oriada was absent. The meeting began without a quorum as an informational session, so the agenda was shifted to allow discussion of recommendations and the DPIE presentation before formal action. Quorum was reached later in the meeting.

Quorum and Agenda

• Roll call was taken, with several members joining after the start. The agenda included consideration of the October 14, 2026 meeting minutes, a presentation from the Department of Permitting Inspection and Enforcement (DPIE), and prioritization of the work group's recommendations.
• Because quorum was not initially present, the minutes vote was deferred until later.

DPIE Presentation: Child Care Permitting and County Review

• DPIE Deputy Director Henson and Chief of Staff Lori Paris presented the county and state permitting process for child care facilities. They described a dual-track process with state requirements and local review, and varying rules for family child care homes (8 and under), large family child care homes (9–12), and commercial child care centers (12 or more).
• Presenters emphasized use-and-occupancy permits, licensed contractors, floor and site plans, sprinkler and fire-protection requirements, and early zoning due diligence before purchasing or leasing space. They said a zoning certification letter from the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission can be obtained for $50, $75, or $100 and typically returns within five business days.
• DPIE noted customer-service improvements, a fast-track program for projects 5,000 square feet and below, and willingness to revisit a prior use-and-occupancy work group with Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS).
• In response to a question about sprinkler-system costs quoted at $20,000–$30,000 for a family child care home, DPIE said costs depend on the building and referred providers to the Prince George's Economic Development Corporation and the Small Business Administration for possible grants or loans.

PGCPS Before and After-School Care Recommendation

• Dr. Searcy, joined by PGCPS staff Otis Dupree and Sandy Osborne, presented a new recommendation. PGCPS does not operate before- and after-care programs itself; it currently partners with four vendors serving 65 schools. A new RFP to expand vendor-managed child care is expected to be released in the first or second week of November.
• The concern is that vendors must wait for PGCPS to receive documentation and approvals from DPIE and other agencies, sometimes as late as July, before starting a licensing process that can take up to 90 days. That delay can prevent programs from being ready for the first day of school.
• Dr. Searcy recommended allowing vendors to pursue MSDE licensing concurrently, or allowing vendors to use PGCPS's use-and-occupancy and fire inspection certificates for the same buildings and children. The goal is for families to have before- and after-care available when school starts.
• DPIE Chief of Staff Lori Paris said the suggestions could be reviewed for possible code amendments, and Henson noted that an earlier DPIE work group had examined use-and-occupancy issues with PGCPS.

Work Group Discussion and Prioritization

• Dr. Searcy urged prioritizing the PGCPS facility-approval recommendation, with a goal of being in place by April or May 2027 at the latest for the 2027–2028 school year. She also said PGCPS has grant-writing support for providers seeking to participate in mixed-delivery pre-K, so that may not need to be a work group recommendation.
• Brianna Meadows, a new family child care provider, described difficulties finding buildings zoned for child care and expressed interest in expanding and in becoming a mixed-delivery pre-K provider. PGCPS said an MSDE grant is typically released in January or February and that support is available for eligible providers.
• Alejandra urged the group to treat county-level initiatives, such as the child care facility grant and the scholarship for Prince George's County families passed earlier in the year, as priority work and to accelerate their rollout.
• A participant with licensing experience advised school-based providers to notify regional offices early and begin MSDE applications in January rather than waiting until late summer, noting that licensing specialists face heavy caseloads and required inspections in August and September.
• Caleb described CB 35 as legislation promoted by Chair Oriada that increases child care access by eliminating special-exception approval for day care centers in all zones, removing minimum parking requirements in transit-oriented zones, and allowing alternative parking compliance in other zones.

Key Outcomes

• The October 14, 2026 meeting minutes were approved by roll-call vote after quorum was reached; no nays were heard.
• The work group agreed to continue refining and narrowing its recommendations, with attention to implementation steps, resources and costs, success measures, and county-level actions. Staff will reach out to individual members for input before the next group discussion.
• The next Child Care Improvement Work Group meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 12, 2026, at 2:00 p.m., instead of the usual Wednesday because of the November 11 holiday.
• The meeting was adjourned by voice vote after a motion and second.