Countywide

A proposal to form a Child Care and Development Commission will be considered by San Diego County supervisors after the idea is reviewed by the county’s top administrator, supervisors decided Tuesday.

The proposal, by Supervisor Leon Williams, calls for the creation of a 21-member commission to identify, coordinate and ensure the delivery of child care and child development services.

The commission’s members would be appointed by the Board of Supervisors and by the Commission on the Status of Women, the Public Welfare Advisory Board and the child care commission itself.

Williams said an estimated 60,000 county children left unattended face kidnappings, abuse by strangers, exposure to accidents, house fires and poisonings. He said these children are also recruited by street gangs and other criminals.

The county’s efforts to deal with these problems are fragmented, uncoordinated and often ineffective, Williams said.

“We are at a point where we can no longer wait for some other agency to take responsibility for the safety and welfare of our children,” Williams said.