Education Childcare Partnership Act

Summary: Education Childcare Partnership Act - Expresses the sense of the Congress that local education agencies (LEAs) that carry out qualified school-based child care programs should seek to:  (1) become accredited child care centers; and (2) hire credentialed child care professionals. 
Amends part A (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) of title IV of the Social Security Act to establish a program of grants to States for school-based child care. 
Sets forth grant application and allotment requirements.  Reserves a portion of program funds for Indian tribes.  Requires recipient States to:  (1) provide such grant funds to LEAs for specified uses; (2) ensure that such funds are expended in coordination with State- established programs under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990; and (3) use such funds to supplement and not supplant other Federal, State, and local funds provided for programs that serve the health and developmental needs of children. 
Makes appropriations for such grants for FY 1999 through 2002.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Education Childcare Partnership 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Each day an estimated 13,000,000 children spend some 
        part of their day in child care.
            (2) 54 percent of mothers with children between the ages of 
        0 and 3 years are in the work force. Labor force participation 
        rises to 63 percent for mothers with children under 6 years of 
        age.
            (3) Every day 3 out of 5 preschoolers go to child care 
        centers or homes while their parents work.
            (4) The number of single-parent households and 2-parent 
        households in which the single parent or both parents work is 
        increasing significantly.
            (5) The availability of child care that is reliable, 
        convenient, and affordable helps parents to reach and maintain 
        self-sufficiency and is essential to making the transition from 
        welfare to work.
            (6) Only an estimated 1 out of 10 eligible families receive 
        assistance in paying for child care from Federal funds.
            (7) Full-day child care can cost between $4,000 and $9,000 
        per year.
            (8) In many instances, high quality child care services 
        cost little more than mediocre child care services. An 
        investment of only an additional 10 percent has been found to 
        have a significant impact on the quality of child care 
        services.
            (9) Children placed in poor quality child care settings 
        have been found to have delayed language and reading skills, as 
        well as increased aggressive behavior toward other children and 
        adults.
            (10) School based child care may utilize existing resources 
        such as art supplies, sports equipment, musical instruments, 
        and playgrounds to provide quality programs.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING LOCAL EDUCATION AGENCIES THAT 
              CARRY OUT QUALIFIED SCHOOL-BASED CHILD CARE PROGRAMS.

    It is the sense of the Congress that local education agencies that 
carry out qualified school-based child care programs should seek to 
become accredited child care centers and seek to hire credentialed 
child care professionals.

SEC. 4. GRANTS TO STATES FOR SCHOOL-BASED CHILD CARE.

    Part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601-619) 
is amended by inserting after section 418 the following:

``SEC. 418A. GRANTS TO STATES FOR SCHOOL-BASED CHILD CARE.

    ``(a) Application.--
            ``(1) In general.--A State desiring to receive a grant 
        under this section shall submit to the Secretary, at such time 
        and in such manner as the Secretary shall by regulation 
        require, an application that--
                    ``(A) includes an assurance that the State will use 
                any grant made to the State under this section to 
                provide funds to local education agencies for the 
                purpose of establishing qualified school-based child 
                care programs;
                    ``(B) includes an assurance that a local education 
                agency that receives funds provided to the State under 
                this section will comply with subsection (e)(1);
                    ``(C) includes evidence that parents, schools, 
                employers, State and local government agencies, and 
                child care agencies, including resource and referral 
                agencies, have collaborated in the preparation of the 
                application; or
                    ``(D) includes a State plan that--
                            ``(i) meets the requirements of section 
                        658E(c)(2) of the Child Care and Development 
                        Block Grant Act of 1990, with respect to grant 
                        funds provided to the State under this section; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) is designed to be implemented during 
                        a 2-year period; and
                    ``(F) contains such additional information as the 
                Secretary shall by regulation require.
            ``(2) Approval.--The Secretary shall approve an application 
        that meets the requirements of paragraph (1).
    ``(b) Entitlement.--A State whose application submitted under 
subsection (a) for a 2-year period is approved by the Secretary shall 
be entitled to receive from the Secretary a grant for each year in the 
period, in an amount determined under subsection (c), in lieu of any 
other grant to which the State may be entitled under this section.
    ``(c) Amount of Grant.--
            ``(1) Allotments to states.--After making the reservation 
        described in subsection (d) of this section, the total amount 
        available for grants under this section for a fiscal year shall 
        be allotted among the States with applications approved under 
        subsection (a) of this section, in the manner provided for in 
        section 418(a)(2)(B).
            ``(2) Redistribution.--Section 418(a)(2)(D) shall apply to 
        amounts allotted under paragraph (1) of this subsection.
    ``(d) Indian Tribes.--The Secretary shall reserve not less than 1 
percent, and not more than 2 percent, of the aggregate amount 
appropriated to carry out this section for each fiscal year for 
payments to Indian tribes and tribal organizations.
    ``(e) Use of Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--A State to which a grant is made under 
        this section shall provide the grant funds to local education 
        agencies, which shall use the grant only--
                    ``(A) to operate, directly or by contract or 
                agreement, qualified school-based child care programs 
                that serve children eligible for assistance under the 
                Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, but 
                do not necessarily limit their enrollment to such 
                children;
                    ``(B) to hire and train persons to provide child 
                care services in school-based child care programs;
                    ``(C) to construct, expand, or rehabilitate 
                facilities for use as school-based child care programs; 
                or
                    ``(D) to cover costs of administering the grant, 
                except that not more than 1 percent of the grant funds 
                provided to any such agency may be used to cover such 
                costs.
            ``(2) Coordination with programs under the child care and 
        development block grant act of 1990.--A State to which a grant 
        is made under this section shall ensure that the grant funds 
        are expended in coordination with the programs established by 
        the State under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act 
        of 1990.
            ``(3) Maintenance of effort.--A State to which a grant is 
        made under this section shall use the grant funds to supplement 
        and not supplant other Federal, State, and local funds provided 
        for programs that serve the health and developmental needs of 
        children.
            ``(4) Availability of funds.--Amounts provided to a State 
        under this section shall be available for use by the State 
        without fiscal year limitation.
    ``(f) Appropriation.--Out of any money in the Treasury of the 
United States not otherwise appropriated, there are appropriated for 
grants under this section $250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1999 
through 2002.
    ``(g) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Local education agency.--The term `local education 
        agency' has the meaning given such term in the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965.
            ``(2) Qualified school-based child care program.--The term 
        `qualified school-based child care program' means a program--
                    ``(A) the principal use of which is to provide all-
                day care for children who have not attained 7 years of 
                age, and, at State option;
                    ``(B) which is located either in a school structure 
                or on the grounds of a school;
                    ``(C) which meets all applicable requirements of 
                State and local laws and regulations, including those 
                relating to the licensing of facilities in which child 
                care assistance is to be provided as a child care 
                facility; and
                    ``(D) the costs of the child care programs of which 
                are determined on a sliding fee scale (within the 
                meaning of section 658P(12) of the Child Care and 
                Development Block Grant Act of 1990).
            ``(3) State.--The term `State' means each of the 50 States 
        and the District of Columbia.''.