To provide guaranteed child care assistance for low-income families.

Summary: Ensuring Child Care for Working Families Act of 2012 - Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) (TANF) of title IV of the Social Security Act to revise funding requirements for child care assistance to: (1) guarantee child care assistance for a family with a dependent child requiring such care, if the total income of the family does not exceed 200% of the poverty line and the child care assistance will enable an individual in the family to accept employment, remain employed, or participate in an education or training activity; and (2) include Indian tribes and tribal organizations as entities eligible for state grants in amounts equal to those granted to states.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Ensuring Child Care for Working 
Families Act of 2012''.

SEC. 2. CHILD CARE FUNDING.

    (a) In General.--Section 418 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
618) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 418. FUNDING FOR CHILD CARE.

    ``(a) General Child Care Entitlement.--
            ``(1) General entitlement.--Each State shall, for the 
        purpose of providing child care assistance, be entitled to 
        payments under a grant under this subsection for a fiscal year 
        in an amount equal to the greater of--
                    ``(A) the total amount required to be paid to the 
                State under section 403 for fiscal year 1994 or 1995 
                (whichever is greater) with respect to expenditures for 
                child care under subsections 402(g) and (i) of section 
                402 (as in effect before October 1, 1995); or
                    ``(B) the average of the total amounts required to 
                be paid to the State for fiscal years 1992 through 1994 
                under the subsections referred to in subparagraph (A).
            ``(2) Remainder.--
                    ``(A) Grants.--The Secretary shall use any amounts 
                appropriated for a fiscal year under paragraph (3) of 
                this subsection, and remaining after grants are awarded 
                under paragraph (1) of this subsection, to make grants 
                to States (and Indian tribes and tribal organizations 
                with applications approved under section 658O(c) of the 
                Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990) in 
                the amounts necessary to provide guaranteed child care 
                assistance to the populations described in subsection 
                (b)(2) of this section.
                    ``(B) Federal matching of state expenditures 
                exceeding historical expenditures.--The Secretary shall 
                pay to each eligible State for a fiscal year an amount 
                equal to the Federal medical assistance percentage for 
                the State for fiscal year (as defined in section 
                1905(b), as such section was in effect on September 30, 
                1995) of so much of the State's expenditures for child 
                care in that fiscal year as exceed the total amount of 
                expenditures by the State (including expenditures from 
                amounts made available from Federal funds) in fiscal 
                year 1994 or 1995 (whichever is greater) for the 
                programs described in paragraph (1)(A) of this 
                subsection.
            ``(3) Appropriation.--For grants under this section, there 
        are appropriated to the Secretary such sums as are necessary to 
        carry out this section for each fiscal year.
            ``(4) Data used to determine state and federal shares of 
        expenditures.--In making the determinations concerning 
        expenditures required under paragraphs (1) and (2)(B), the 
        Secretary shall use information that was reported by the State 
        on ACF Form 231 and available as of the applicable dates 
        specified in clauses (i)(I), (ii), and (iii)(III) of section 
        403(a)(1)(D).
    ``(b) Use of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--Amounts received by a State, Indian 
        tribe, or tribal organization under this section shall be--
                    ``(A) used only to provide child care assistance; 
                and
                    ``(B) available for use without fiscal year 
                limitation.
            ``(2) Child care to be guaranteed for certain 
        populations.--As a condition of receiving funds under this 
        section, a State (or Indian tribe or tribal organization with 
        an application approved under section 658O(c) of the Child Care 
        and Development Block Grant Act of 1990) shall guarantee child 
        care assistance for a family with a dependent child requiring 
        such care, if--
                    ``(A) the total income of the family does not 
                exceed 200 percent of the poverty line (within the 
                meaning of section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget 
                Reconciliation Act of 1981, including any revision 
                required by such section applicable to a family of the 
                size involved); and
                    ``(B) the child care assistance will enable an 
                individual in the family (including an individual 
                receiving assistance under the State program funded 
                under this part) to accept employment, remain employed, 
                or participate in an education or training activity.
    ``(c) Application of Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 
1990.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, amounts provided to 
a State under this section shall be transferred to the lead agency 
under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, 
integrated by the State into the programs established by the State 
under such Act, and be subject to the requirements and limitations of 
such Act.
    ``(d) Regulations.--The Secretary shall promulgate regulations to 
implement this section.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the 1st day of the 1st fiscal year that begins after the 
12-month period that begins with the date of the enactment of this Act.