Alaska Daycare Record Keeping Requirements

What Licensing Inspectors Expect to See On-Site

Every licensed child care home in Alaska must maintain organized records that are available for review during scheduled and unannounced licensing inspections. These aren't optional best practices — they're regulatory requirements under 7 AAC 57, and missing records are among the most common compliance findings.

The core record categories:

Child enrollment files. One file per enrolled child containing enrollment forms, emergency contact information, authorized pickup persons, parental consents for activities and field trips, and any special care instructions (allergies, medications, dietary restrictions).

Immunization records. Current immunization records for every enrolled child. The licensing inspector will check that these are up to date and match state immunization schedules. If a child has a medical or religious exemption, the exemption documentation must be in the file.

Medication administration logs. If you administer any medication — prescription or over-the-counter — you must log the child's name, medication name, dosage, time administered, and the written parental authorization for each administration. Medications themselves must be stored in a locked container (refrigerated medications in a locked box inside the fridge).

Daily Attendance Logs

This is the record most providers underestimate.

You must maintain daily sign-in and sign-out records showing the exact arrival and departure time of each child. For CCAP-enrolled families, this requirement is especially strict: under federal CCDF audit requirements, hand-written sign-in sheets must have legible parent signatures, or you must use a digital attendance system that generates secure, timestamped logs.

Sloppy attendance records are the single most common cause of CCAP overpayment notices. If the state audits your billing and your attendance log doesn't match your submitted hours, you're financially responsible for repaying the difference.

Even if you don't accept CCAP families, maintaining clean attendance records protects you in liability situations — if a parent disputes pickup times or claims their child was unsupervised, your log is your primary documentation.

Monthly Fire Drill Records

Form CC63 documents your monthly evacuation drills. For each drill, record:

• Date and time of the drill
• Number of children and adults present
• Evacuation time (target: all occupants out within 150 seconds)
• Notes on any issues encountered

The licensing inspector will review your drill log and look for monthly documentation. Missing months don't just trigger a correction — they raise questions about whether drills are actually happening.

Incident and Injury Reports

Form CC91 documents any child injury or incident that occurs during care hours. Even minor incidents — a scraped knee on the playground, a bumped head on a table edge — should be documented with the child's name, description of what happened, treatment provided, and notification to the parent.

Emergencies that disrupt operations — such as a fire, flood, prolonged utility outage, sewage backup, or any incident requiring the emergency relocation of children — must be reported to the CCPO within 24 hours.

Organizing Your Records

Most providers use physical binders organized by category: one binder for child enrollment files, one for operational records (drill logs, incident reports, medication logs), and one for staff documentation (training certificates, background clearances, CPR/First Aid cards).

Whatever system you use, the standard is this: when a licensing specialist walks in for an unannounced inspection, you should be able to produce any required record within minutes. "I know it's somewhere in the filing cabinet" is a compliance finding waiting to happen.

The Alaska Home Daycare License guide includes a record-keeping system setup alongside the full operational requirements, so you're organized from day one rather than scrambling to build binders after your first monitoring visit.

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