New Proposed Bill Seeks To Support HOA Home Daycares

HOA home daycares are a massive point of contention in Washington. But, a new proposed bill seeks to fix that. The bill has already passed the House and is now on its way to the Senate.

Representative Tana Senn, who sponsored the bill, recognized that childcare is a huge problem in the state. She spoke to an estimated 90 daycare providers and discovered they were struggling with fines from their homeowners associations, and some are even under threat of eviction due to the practice.

This is the case for Laura Pavlov, who runs a state-licensed daycare, Alphabetz Daycare, in Lake Stevens. Pavlov has been running a childcare center in her home for almost two years, even paying her HOA the needed fines to remain open.

Her HOA’s rules don’t allow commercial enterprises that cause disruption or use advertising. Pavlov does not believe that policy applies to her situation. She even started a petition and earned her neighbors’ support.

“There is definitely a childcare crisis,” Senn told local news. “We need to have all hands on deck to be serving families and making sure parents can go to work.”

Should House Bill 1199 pass, Pavlov would be one of those who would benefit. But, even if it does not pass, Pavlov has said that she will continue operations nonetheless.