What is a Letter of Compliance Facility?

Child care facilities in Maryland are not regulated the same way across the board.  Instead, these facilities, which are overseen by the Maryland Department of Education, are broken into different categories. 

In this state, three categories of child care exist: Family Child Care Homes, Letter of Compliance facilities and Child Care Centers.

Each of these categories is regulated by its own code and has its own set of items that get reviewed during their required inspections. 

So you can better understand the state system, here is a breakdown of what defines each type of facility.

LETTER OF COMPLIANCE FACILITY

According to the state, "A Letter of Compliance ( LOC) facility is a center-based child care facility that is operated by a church or church-based organization. 

As such, it must meet all the same health and safety requirements that “regular” centers must meet, but it is exempt (under Maryland statute – Family Law 5-574) from any requirements pertaining to professional staff qualifications and curriculum content."