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H 7371Cities & Towns

Towns and Cities - Zoning Ordinances

This bill prohibits municipalities from using zoning laws to restrict licensed in-home daycare providers to fewer than twelve children.

Signed into law69 Yea0 Nay6 Not voting
Population
Affected
28
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 28, 2026Committee House Municipal Government & Housing

Plain-English Summary

This legislation amends Rhode Island's zoning laws to prevent cities and towns from restricting the capacity of licensed family child care homes. Specifically, it mandates that no municipal ordinance or regulation can limit a Department of Human Services (DHS) licensed provider to caring for fewer than twelve children at a time. While this removes local zoning caps on capacity, the bill clarifies that providers must still comply with state-level licensing standards and regulations established by the Department of Human Services regarding safety and operations.

For younger readers

This new rule helps people who take care of children in their own homes, like a small daycare. Sometimes, towns have rules that say these homes can only watch a very small number of kids. This law says that towns cannot stop these homes from watching up to twelve children at once, as long as the state government says the home is safe and follows the rules. This helps make sure there are enough places for parents to take their children when they go to work.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Family child care providersParents of young childrenMunicipal zoning boardsDepartment of Human ServicesHomeowners in residential zones
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
None
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Expands access to affordable childcare for working families by removing arbitrary municipal barriers that limit the supply of available slots in residential neighborhoods.
  • Empowers women and minority business owners, who make up a significant portion of home-based childcare providers, by allowing them to maximize their income potential without discriminatory zoning restrictions.
  • Promotes economic equity by preventing wealthy or exclusionary communities from using zoning laws to block essential childcare services that support the workforce.
  • Reduces the ability of local communities to regulate density and commercial activity within residential zones, which could be seen as eroding local democratic control.
  • Could potentially lead to overcrowding or noise issues in dense neighborhoods if the infrastructure cannot support the increased traffic associated with larger childcare capacities.
  • Does not address the root causes of the childcare crisis, such as the need for public subsidies or universal pre-K, relying instead on market-based expansion of private homes.
For Conservatives
  • Protects property rights by allowing homeowners to utilize their property for economic gain without excessive interference or arbitrary caps from local government.
  • Reduces red tape and regulatory burdens on small business owners, fostering a freer market for childcare services.
  • Encourages private sector solutions to the childcare shortage rather than creating new government-funded entitlement programs.
  • Undermines the principle of Home Rule by stripping local municipalities of the authority to determine zoning standards and neighborhood character for themselves.
  • May negatively impact the quiet enjoyment and property values of residential neighborhoods by allowing business operations with higher occupancy next to private homes.
  • Represents state-level overreach where a "one-size-fits-all" mandate ignores the specific logistical constraints of different towns.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 8 additions · 1 deletion

SECTION 1. Section 45-24-30 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-24 entitled "Zoning Ordinances" is hereby amended to read as follows: 45-24-30. General purposes of zoning ordinances.

(a) Zoning regulations shall be developed and maintained in accordance with a comprehensive plan prepared, adopted, and as may be amended, in accordance with chapter 22.2 of this title and shall be designed to address the following purposes. The general assembly recognizes these purposes, each with equal priority and numbered for reference purposes only.

(1) Promoting the public health, safety, and general welfare.

(2) Providing for a range of uses and intensities of use appropriate to the character of the city or town and reflecting current and expected future needs.

(3) Providing for orderly growth and development that recognizes:

(i) The goals and patterns of land use contained in the comprehensive plan of the city or town adopted pursuant to chapter 22.2 of this title;

(ii) The natural characteristics of the land, including its suitability for use based on soil characteristics, topography, and susceptibility to surface or groundwater pollution;

(iii) The values and dynamic nature of coastal and freshwater ponds, the shoreline, and freshwater and coastal wetlands;

(iv) The values of unique or valuable natural resources and features;

(v) The availability and capacity of existing and planned public and/or private services and facilities;

(vi) The need to shape and balance urban and rural development; and

(vii) The use of innovative development regulations and techniques.

(4) Providing for the control, protection, and/or abatement of air, water, groundwater, and noise pollution, and soil erosion and sedimentation.

(5) Providing for the protection of the natural, historic, cultural, and scenic character of the city or town or areas in the municipality.

(6) Providing for the preservation and promotion of agricultural production, forest, silviculture, aquaculture, timber resources, and open space.

(7) Providing for the protection of public investment in transportation, water, stormwater management systems, sewage treatment and disposal, solid waste treatment and disposal, schools, recreation, public facilities, open space, and other public requirements.

(8) Promoting a balance of housing choices, for all income levels and groups, to assure the health, safety, and welfare of all citizens and their rights to affordable, accessible, safe, and sanitary housing.

(9) Providing opportunities for the establishment of low- and moderate-income housing.

(10) Promoting safety from fire, flood, and other natural or unnatural disasters.

(11) Promoting a high level of quality in design in the development of private and public facilities.

(12) Promoting implementation of the comprehensive plan of the city or town adopted pursuant to chapter 22.2 of this title.

(13) Providing for coordination of land uses with contiguous municipalities, other municipalities, the state, and other agencies, as appropriate, especially with regard to resources and facilities that extend beyond municipal boundaries or have a direct impact on that municipality.

(14) Providing for efficient review of development proposals, to clarify and expedite the zoning approval process.

(15) Providing for procedures for the administration of the zoning ordinance, including, but not limited to, variances, special-use permits, and, where adopted, procedures for modifications.

(16) Providing opportunities for reasonable accommodations in order to comply with the Rhode Island Fair Housing Practices Act, chapter 37 of title 34; the United States Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (FHAA); the Rhode Island Civil Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, chapter 87 of title 42; and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. Provided, however, that any zoning ordinance in which a community sets forth standards or requirements for the location, design, construction, or maintenance of on-site wastewater treatment systems shall first be submitted to the director of the department of environmental management for approval as to the technical merits of the ordinance. In addition, any zoning ordinance in which a municipality sets forth standards regarding wetland requirements, shall first be submitted to the director of the department of environmental management for approval as to the technical merits of the ordinance.

(b) Upon the effective date of this section, a city or town shall no longer be authorized to adopt as a provision of its zoning ordinance new requirements that specify buffers or setbacks in relation to freshwater wetland, freshwater wetland in the vicinity of the coast, or coastal wetland or that specify setback distances between an onsite wastewater treatment system and a freshwater wetlands, freshwater wetland in the vicinity of the coast, or coastal wetland.

(c) Cities and towns shall be prohibited from applying the requirements in existing zoning ordinances pertaining to both wetland buffers and onsite wastewater treatment system setbacks to development, redevelopment, construction, or rehabilitation applications submitted to a municipality. Nothing herein shall rescind the authority of a city or town to enforce other local zoning requirements.

(d) Notwithstanding any law or regulation to the contrary, no city or town shall by ordinance or regulation restrict or limit the number of children provided services and care by a department of human services licensed family child care home provider to less than twelve (12) children at a time; provided, however, that nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit or abridge the provisions of chapter 12.5 of title 42 or the regulations promulgated by the department of human services to implement and enforce the provisions of chapter 12.5 of title 42. (d)(e) Cities and towns shall act to amend their ordinances and regulations to conform to this section within twelve (12) months of the effective date of state regulations referenced herein.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.