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BACKGROUND Over the last year, the Planning Commission and City Council have reviewed several applications for conditional use permits for private, for profit uses such as martial arts studios, tutoring, cultural education and other instruction, wherein school -age children regularly attend the program every day after school and /or for extended periods during school vacations. In effect, these businesses provide after school care and child care during school vacation periods for school -age children. On occasion, the State Department of Social Services Community Care Licensing Division has granted these businesses an "exemption from licensure" on the grounds that the business is operating as either a "public recreation program" or a "private recreation program" and that the program meets the following criteria: The program is operated only during hours other than normal school hours for grades K -12, inclusive, in the public school district where the program is located, or operated only during periods when students in grades K -12, inclusive are normally not in session in the public school district where the program is located, for either of the following periods: For under 16 hours a week, or For a total of 12 weeks or less during a 12 -month period, without regard to whether the weeks are consecutive. However, staff believes that these businesses do not qualify as "public recreation programs" because the programs are not operated by the state, city, county, special district, school district, community college district, chartered city, or chartered city and county that meet the criteria as defined in the Community Care Licensing Division's Manual of Policies and Procedures or by the underlying code. Regarding the reference, above, to the exemption of "private recreation programs there is no specific definition of a "private recreation program" in the Health and Safety Code. The statute citation provided by the Child Care Licensing Division (Section 1596.793) in their exemption letters refers to an exemption for recreation programs conducted: "...by the Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Boys Club, Girls Club, or Camp Fire, or similar organizations as determined by regulations of the department." However, the businesses that are provided these exemptions are not nationally recognized, non profit organizations, but rather individual business people whose qualifications and operating standards are largely unknown. Although staff has discussed these concerns with the Manager of the Bay Area Regional Office of the Community Care Licensing Division, the Division's rationale for exempting these uses under these statutes is not clear. The State is currently considering legislation that would exempt "heritage schools" from child day care licensing requirements. SB 379 (Huff) defines a heritage school as one that serves school -age children, offers education and tutoring in a language other than English, and offers culturally- enriching activities based on the culture or customs of a country other than the United States. Such schools would be required to maintain Page 2 of 7