Unless the terms are renegotiated, the territorial government's new contract for all of the Yukon's day homes is going to put at least one operator out of business.

Linda Travill, who operates the Alligator Pie day home in Riverdale, raised concerns about the new contribution agreement the government has proposed for the territory's day home operators.

She is worried that provisions within the proposed deal force requirements on the operators which are financially too onerous.

'As a small business owner, I certainly can't afford a certified accountant that could provide reports for me quarterly,' Travill said in an interview Thursday.

She said there is not a lot of money to be made in operating a day home.

With how much she spends on toys, food, programs and staff to operate the day home, Travill said the $4,000 she estimated she may need for an accountant simply isn't there.

On top of that, the agreement states the day home operator will not make the government liable for anything which happens at the facility and the government is protected from facing claims or charges.

'This contract just costs me so much to run my business that it is a viability issue,' Travill said.

If this is the deal that day home operators have to sign to get any funding from the government, then Travill will not be able to operate it either way.

She can't run it without the government grant if she doesn't sign the agreement. If she does sign, the costs required to follow the deal will be too costly for her to continue, even with the grant.

'Is it negotiable?' Travill wondered about the package.

The government's proposed contract received by some of the day home owners is marked 'draft'.

Travill said there is an assumption among the child care community that the government plans to replace the direct operating grant the operators have been receiving for years with this agreement.

So far, there have been no negotiations nor consultation on the agreement, according to Travill.

On the issue of hiring an accountant, the draft agreement Travill is referring to states:

'The operator shall submit quarterly, monthly direct operating grant statements and, upon request by Yukon, reasonable additional operational and financial information and supporting documentation that demonstrate financial accountability under this agreement or statistics to support mutual interests in the administration of this agreement.'

In another section, the agreement states: 'the operator shall provide an annual financial statement and where possible must be reviewed and signed by a certified accountant, as part of the annual report required by this agreement.'

The deal also says the operator must keep proper accounts and records of the program and the services.

Travill is not alone in worrying about what this may mean for the industry.

'I do know a number of operators who are really, gravely concerned,' she said.

Jasbir Randhawa, a spokeswoman for the Yukon Child Care Association, said the group has hired a lawyer to go over the package because it's not clear exactly what this will mean for the territory's day home operators.

'It doesn't make any sense to an ordinary person,' she said.

'It's just very confusing for people and they are very intimidating.'

Like Travill, Randhawa has a problem with this package if this is the deal the government will expect the operators to sign by April 1.

She said the current grant mainly pays the bills for the operators. This appears to be requiring more money without adding much to the grants.

Personally, as a day home operator, she will not sign the agreement as it stands.

She said the day home community wants to be accountable and they are willing to show receipts when they spend money for items like toys. But this is requiring too much.

'What happens if we don't sign by March 31?' she asked. Members of the child care community are concerned they may not have any operating grant if they don't sign.

Randhawa's other issue is the fact that some day home operators have received a copy of the package but not others.

'They have not started on the right foot,' she said.

The government refused to answer questions on this matter today. Instead, it chose to issue a written statement from Health and Social Services Minister Peter Jenkins.

'Although some individuals are now calling into question the necessity of contribution agreements, this step has been taken in direct response to the four-year plan which was submitted to the Yukon government by the Yukon Child Care Working Group, which represents Yukon child care providers,' Jenkins' letter states.

The statement says the four-year plan called for more accountability of the funding and the service they provide.

'The government made a commitment last summer, in response to the four-year plan, that it would change the direct operating grant funding from a grant to a contribution agreement to ensure the accountability the working group was seeking,' the release reads.

It states the government has similar deals with non-profit groups like Kaushee's Place and the Teen Parent Centre. The requirements of information are no different than those deals, reads the statement.

'The child care community has requested additional funding from the government. As a government, we need to be able to demonstrate that the money we put into these initiatives is being spent for the purposes it was provided,' says Jenkins' statement.

'We provide money to child care centres for operational expenses including wages and training; we provide money for toys and food.

'We need to be able to say to the taxpayers that public funding is being used for its intended purposes of wages and operating costs, which is what the child care providers have been advocating for.'

Both Travill and Randhawa said they're willing to provide that accountability, by providing receipts, without going to the expensive extent of hiring an accountant.

'They don't have the right to go in people's private books,' Randhawa said.

She said there are already inspectors who come in and check the facilities to ensure accountability.