Yellowstone County, MT Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)

Under the county's adopted zoning definitions, a family day care home is a private residence providing supplemental parental care for up to six children (including the operator's) from separate families on a regular basis; a group day care home serves seven to twelve. Both are permitted uses in the residential districts and both must be state-licensed. Thirteen or more children make it a day care center, requiring further licensing. Montana childcare licensing is handled by the Department of Public Health and Human Services (the zoning text cites the state licensing authority under MCA Title 52/53). Where no zoning district covers a rural parcel, the county sets no local rule, but state licensing still applies.