New House bill aims to peel back banana regulations in childcare [View all]

Source: CNN Politics

PUBLISHED May 10, 2026, 7:00 AM ET


A new bipartisan bill passed in the House is aiming to eliminate childcare regulations that critics in the industry say have gone bananas. Across the country at some daycare centers, workers can open a bag of chips for a toddler but may not be allowed to peel a banana without triggering additional food preparation rules — a regulatory quirk that a bipartisan group of lawmakers is now trying to change.

The legislation, known as the Cutting Red Tape on Child Care Providers Act, passed in the House last week. It aims to create a separate category for foods with a low risk for foodborne illness — like peeled fruits and vegetables — and seeks to prevent childcare providers from being penalized for serving them.

Democratic Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington state, who sponsored the bill, says this legislation would cut unnecessary red tape that discourages daycare workers from serving fresh fruits and vegetables, though critics argue the issue is more nuanced and question how much impact the bill would have.

“When we have policies that wittingly or unwittingly make Cheetos more accessible to a toddler than fresh fruit, we have a crisis brewing,” Gluesenkamp Perez said, in a video posted on X.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/10/politics/house-bill-banana-regulations-childcare