MIDDLEVILLE -- Francie Brummel and Lisa Snyder thought they had a perfect solution to getting their two kids on the Thornapple Kellogg school district bus.

But that solution has landed Snyder in hot water, and state Rep. Brian Calley, R-Portland, is trying to fast-track legislation to undo the mess.

Brummel drops her 7-year-old son off at Snyder's nearby house on her way to work, where he waits for about an hour before the bus comes each morning. Another neighbor, Lori Forbes, brings her son and Mindy Rose's son to Snyder's home as well, then waits with all of them for the bus.

"We thought it was this awesome solution," Brummel said. "Neither of our kids wanted to get on the bus by themselves."

But after only three days of school, Snyder was notified by the state Department of Human Services that a neighbor had filed a complaint that she was operating an illegal day care out of her home.

"I'm not doing anything wrong, or anything a lot of other parents don't do all over the country," said Snyder, a stay-at-home mom.

The women are all friends who live near each other in a rural part of Barry County. Snyder's home on Thornbird Drive is a designated bus stop, and the children would all ride the same bus anyway.

"Honestly, I don't think you'll meet a person with children who hasn't broken this law," said Snyder.

She said she got nowhere when she contacted the state to try and explain the situation and reaffirm that she does not take any money for helping out her neighbors.

According to state law, a person cannot provide care for unrelated children in their home for more than four weeks per calendar year unless they are licensed or registered with the state. Failure to do so is a misdemeanor punishable with fines or jail time.

Calley said the legislation he introduced this week would exempt families from state day care rules for what is essentially babysitting.

"My bill basically allows Michigan residents to be good neighbors," he said, adding that the Middleville situation seems to be an "extreme case of government intrusion."

Rose said it wouldn't be practical to find or pay for day care for the few minutes each morning that her son is at Snyder's house.

"I'm a single mom," she said. "I have to work, and, honestly, I don't know what I would do if I couldn't bring my son here to get on the bus every morning. I know he's safe. I'm not going to leave him home alone."

"If she goes to jail, I should too," said Forbes. "We all watch each other's kids or friends' kids. It's really, really sad that friends and neighbors can't help each other out without having the state get involved."

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