(1)    No person may for compensation provide care and supervision for 4 or more children under the age of 7 for less than 24 hours a day unless that person obtains a license to operate a child care center from the department. To obtain a license under this subsection to operate a child care center, a person must meet the minimum requirements for a license established by the department under s. 48.67, meet the requirements specified in s. 48.686, and pay the license fee under sub. (3). A license issued under this subsection is valid until revoked or suspended, but shall be reviewed every 2 years as provided in s. 48.66 (5).

   (2)   This section does not include any of the following:

      (a)    A parent, grandparent, greatgrandparent, stepparent, brother, sister, first cousin, nephew, niece, uncle, or aunt of a child, whether by blood, marriage, or legal adoption, who provides care and supervision for the child.

      (am)    A guardian of a child who provides care and supervision for the child.

      (b)    A public or parochial school or a tribal school.

      (c)    A person employed to come to the home of the child’s parent or guardian for less than 24 hours a day.

      (d)    A county, city, village, town, school district or library that provides programs primarily intended for recreational or social purposes.

   (3)   

      (a)    Except as provided in par. (c), before the department may issue a license under sub. (1) to a child care center that provides care and supervision for 4 to 8 children, the child care center must pay to the department a biennial fee of $60.50. Except as provided in par. (c), before the department may issue a license under sub. (1) to a child care center that provides care and supervision for 9 or more children, the child care center must pay to the department a biennial fee of $30.25, plus a biennial fee of $16.94 per child, based on the number of children that the child care center is licensed to serve. A child care center that wishes to continue a license issued under sub. (1) shall pay the applicable fee under this paragraph by the continuation date of the license. A new child care center shall pay the applicable fee under this paragraph no later than 30 days before the opening of the child care center.

      (b)    A child care center that wishes to continue a license issued under par. (a) and that fails to pay the applicable fee under par. (a) by the continuation date of the license or a new child care center that fails to pay the applicable fee under par. (a) by 30 days before the opening of the child care center shall pay an additional fee of $5 per day for every day after the deadline that the child care center fails to pay the fee.

      (c)    An individual who is eligible for a fee waiver under the veterans fee waiver program under s. 45.44 is not required to pay a fee under par. (a) for a license under sub. (1).