A West Michigan woman says the state is threatening her with fines and possibly jail time for babysitting her neighbors’ children.
Lisa Snyder of Middleville says her neighborhood school bus stop is right in front of her home. It arrives after her neighbors need to be at work, so she watches three of their children for 15-40 minutes until the bus comes.
The Department of Human Services received a complaint that Snyder was operating an illegal child care home. DHS contacted Snyder and told her to get licensed, stop watching her neighbors’ kids, or face the consequences.
“It’s ridiculous.” says Snyder. “We are friends helping friends!” She added that she accepts no money for babysitting.
Holy crap on a pony you have to be kidding. My head exploded when I read this. According to the article a state legislator is drafting legislation to protect people like Lisa Snyder who watch neighbors’ kids as long as they aren’t running a business doing so.
We actually need legislation to allow us to watch our neighbor’s kids?
When, precisely, did this country lose its grip on reality?