I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9811 

To provide assistance with respect to child care infrastructure. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 25, 2024 

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts (for herself, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. GOMEZ, Ms. 

MCCLELLAN, Ms. PETTERSEN, and Ms. TOKUDA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 

A BILL 

To provide assistance with respect to child care 

infrastructure. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Child Care Infrastruc5 ture Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS TO IMPROVE CHILD 

7 CARE SAFETY. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part A of title IV of the Social 

9 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) is amended by insert10 ing after section 418 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 418A. INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS TO IMPROVE CHILD 

2 CARE SAFETY. 

3 ‘‘(a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 

4 ‘Infrastructure Grants To Improve Child Care Safety Act’. 

5 ‘‘(b) NEEDS ASSESSMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IMMEDIATE NEEDS ASSESSMENT.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

8 conduct an immediate needs assessment of the 

9 condition of child care facilities throughout the 

10 United States (with priority given to child care 

11 programs that receive Federal funds), that— 

12 ‘‘(i) considers the infrastructure 

13 needs, as of the date of the enactment of 

14 this section, of a variety of child care cen15 ters, including home-based centers; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) considers how the COVID–19 

17 pandemic has impacted specific metrics, 

18 such as— 

19 ‘‘(I) capacity; 

20 ‘‘(II) investments in infrastruc21 ture changes; 

22 ‘‘(III) the types of infrastructure 

23 changes centers need to implement 

24 and their associated costs; 

25 ‘‘(IV) the price of tuition; and 


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1 ‘‘(V) any changes or anticipated 

2 changes in the number and demo3 graphic of children attending. 

4 ‘‘(B) TIMING.—The immediate needs as5 sessment should occur simultaneously with the 

6 first grant-making cycle under subsection (c). 

7 ‘‘(C) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year 

8 after the date of the enactment of this section, 

9 the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a re10 port containing the result of the needs assess11 ment conducted under subparagraph (A), and 

12 make the assessment publicly available. 

13 ‘‘(2) LONG-TERM NEEDS ASSESSMENT.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

15 conduct a long-term assessment of the condition 

16 of child care facilities throughout the United 

17 States (with priority given to child care pro18 grams that receive Federal funds). The assess19 ment may be conducted through representative 

20 random sampling. 

21 ‘‘(B) REPORT.—Not later than 4 years 

22 after the date of the enactment of this section, 

23 the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a re24 port containing the results of the needs assessVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Oct 08, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9811.IH H9811

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1 ment conducted under subparagraph (A), and 

2 make the assessment publicly available. 

3 ‘‘(c) CHILD CARE FACILITIES GRANTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) GRANTS TO STATES.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

6 award grants to States for the purpose of ac7 quiring, constructing, renovating, or improving 

8 child care facilities. 

9 ‘‘(B) PRIORITIZED FACILITIES.—The Sec10 retary may not award a grant to a State under 

11 subparagraph (A) unless the State involved 

12 agrees, with respect to the use of grant funds, 

13 to prioritize— 

14 ‘‘(i) child care facilities primarily serv15 ing low-income populations; 

16 ‘‘(ii) child care facilities primarily 

17 serving children who have not attained the 

18 age of 5 years with a significant percent19 age of infants and toddlers enrolled; 

20 ‘‘(iii) child care facilities that— 

21 ‘‘(I) are currently unable to serve 

22 young children, had to significantly 

23 reduce capacity, or are unable to serve 

24 more children, due to factors such as 


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1 the inadequate condition, quality, or 

2 availability of facilities; or 

3 ‘‘(II) are seeking to build capac4 ity and expand the number of children 

5 served; 

6 ‘‘(iv) child care facilities that operate 

7 under nontraditional hours; and 

8 ‘‘(v) child care facilities located in 

9 rural or underserved communities. 

10 ‘‘(C) DURATION OF GRANTS.—A grant 

11 under this subsection shall be awarded for a pe12 riod of not more than 5 years. 

13 ‘‘(D) APPLICATION.—To seek a grant 

14 under this subsection, a State shall submit to 

15 the Secretary an application at such time, in 

16 such manner, and containing such information 

17 as the Secretary may require, which informa18 tion shall— 

19 ‘‘(i) be disaggregated as the Secretary 

20 may require; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) include a plan to use a portion of 

22 the grant funds to report back to the Sec23 retary on the impact of using the grant 

24 funds to improve child care facilities. 


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1 ‘‘(E) PRIORITY.—In selecting States for 

2 grants under this subsection, the Secretary 

3 shall prioritize States that— 

4 ‘‘(i) plan to improve center-based and 

5 home-based child care programs, which 

6 may include a combination of child care 

7 and early Head Start or Head Start pro8 grams; 

9 ‘‘(ii) aim to meet specific needs across 

10 urban, suburban, or rural areas as deter11 mined by the State, such as prioritizing 

12 improvements to programs that serve chil13 dren from families with low incomes or 

14 children with disabilities; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) show evidence of collaboration 

16 with— 

17 ‘‘(I) local government officials; 

18 ‘‘(II) other State agencies; 

19 ‘‘(III) nongovernmental organiza20 tions, such as— 

21 ‘‘(aa) organizations within 

22 the philanthropic community; 

23 ‘‘(bb) certified community 

24 development financial institutions 

25 as defined in section 103 of the 


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1 Community Development Bank2 ing and Financial Institutions 

3 Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702) 

4 that have been certified by the 

5 Community Development Finan6 cial Institutions Fund (12 U.S.C. 

7 4703); and 

8 ‘‘(cc) organizations that 

9 have demonstrated experience 

10 in— 

11 ‘‘(AA) providing tech12 nical or financial assistance 

13 for the acquisition, construc14 tion, renovation, or improve15 ment of child care facilities; 

16 ‘‘(BB) providing tech17 nical, financial, or manage18 rial assistance to child care 

19 providers; and 

20 ‘‘(CC) securing private 

21 sources of capital financing 

22 for child care facilities or 

23 other low-income community 

24 development projects; and 


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1 ‘‘(IV) local community organiza2 tions, such as— 

3 ‘‘(aa) child care providers; 

4 ‘‘(bb) community care agen5 cies; 

6 ‘‘(cc) resource and referral 

7 agencies; and 

8 ‘‘(dd) unions. 

9 ‘‘(F) CONSIDERATION.—In selecting States 

10 for grants under this subsection, the Secretary 

11 shall consider— 

12 ‘‘(i) whether the applicant— 

13 ‘‘(I) has or is developing a plan 

14 to address child care facility needs; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(II) demonstrates the capacity 

17 to execute such a plan; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) after the date the report required 

19 by subsection (b)(1)(C) is submitted to the 

20 Congress, the needs of the applicants 

21 based on the results of the assessment. 

22 ‘‘(G) DIVERSITY OF AWARDS.—In award23 ing grants under this section, the Secretary 

24 shall give equal consideration to States with 

25 varying capacities under subparagraph (F). 


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1 ‘‘(H) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 

2 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—As a condition for 

3 the receipt of a grant under subparagraph 

4 (A), a State that is not an Indian tribe 

5 shall agree to make available (directly or 

6 through donations from public or private 

7 entities) contributions with respect to the 

8 cost of the activities to be carried out pur9 suant to subparagraph (A), which may be 

10 provided in cash or in kind, in an amount 

11 equal to 10 percent of the funds provided 

12 through the grant. 

13 ‘‘(ii) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT

14 CONTRIBUTED.—Contributions required by 

15 clause (i) may include— 

16 ‘‘(I) amounts provided by the 

17 Federal Government, or services as18 sisted or subsidized to any significant 

19 extent by the Federal Government; or 

20 ‘‘(II) philanthropic or private-sec21 tor funds. 

22 ‘‘(I) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

23 the last day of the grant period, a State receiv24 ing a grant under this paragraph shall submit 


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1 a report to the Secretary as described in sub2 paragraph (D)— 

3 ‘‘(i) to determine the effects of the 

4 grant in constructing, renovating, or im5 proving child care facilities, including any 

6 changes in response to the COVID–19 

7 pandemic and any effects on access to and 

8 quality of child care; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) to provide such other information 

10 as the Secretary may require. 

11 ‘‘(J) AMOUNT LIMIT.—The annual amount 

12 of a grant under this paragraph may not exceed 

13 $35,000,000. 

14 ‘‘(2) GRANTS TO INTERMEDIARY ORGANIZA15 TIONS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

17 award grants to intermediary organizations, 

18 such as certified community development finan19 cial institutions, tribal organizations, or other 

20 organizations with demonstrated experience in 

21 child care facilities financing, for the purpose of 

22 providing technical assistance, capacity-build23 ing, and financial products to develop or finance 

24 child care facilities. 


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1 ‘‘(B) APPLICATION.—A grant under this 

2 paragraph may be made only to intermediary 

3 organizations that submit to the Secretary an 

4 application at such time, in such manner, and 

5 containing such information as the Secretary 

6 may require. 

7 ‘‘(C) PRIORITY.—In selecting intermediary 

8 organizations for grants under this subsection, 

9 the Secretary shall prioritize intermediary orga10 nizations that— 

11 ‘‘(i) demonstrate experience in child 

12 care facility financing or related commu13 nity facility financing; 

14 ‘‘(ii) demonstrate the capacity to as15 sist States and local governments in devel16 oping child care facilities and programs; 

17 ‘‘(iii) demonstrate the ability to lever18 age grant funding to support financing 

19 tools to build the capacity of child care 

20 providers, such as through credit enhance21 ments; 

22 ‘‘(iv) propose to focus on child care 

23 facilities that operate under nontraditional 

24 hours; 


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1 ‘‘(v) propose to meet a diversity of 

2 needs across States and across urban, sub3 urban, and rural areas at varying types of 

4 center-based, home-based, and other child 

5 care settings, including early care pro6 grams located in freestanding buildings or 

7 in mixed-use properties; and 

8 ‘‘(vi) propose to focus on child care 

9 facilities primarily serving low-income pop10 ulations and children who have not at11 tained the age of 5 years. 

12 ‘‘(D) AMOUNT LIMIT.—The amount of a 

13 grant under this paragraph may not exceed 

14 $10,000,000. 

15 ‘‘(3) REPORT.—Not later than the end of fiscal 

16 year 2029, the Secretary shall submit to the Con17 gress a report on the effects of the grants provided 

18 under this subsection, and make the report publicly 

19 accessible. 

20 ‘‘(d) LABOR STANDARDS FOR ALL GRANTS.—The 

21 Secretary shall require that each entity, including grantees 

22 and subgrantees, that applies for an infrastructure grant 

23 for constructing, renovating, or improving child care facili24 ties, including adapting, reconfiguring, or expanding such 

25 facilities, which is funded in whole or in part under this 


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1 section, shall include in its application written assurance 

2 that all laborers and mechanics employed by contractors 

3 or subcontractors in the performance of construction, al4 ternation or repair, as part of such project, shall be paid 

5 wages at rates not less than those prevailing on similar 

6 work in the locality as determined by the Secretary of 

7 Labor in accordance with subchapter IV of chapter 31 of 

8 part A of subtitle II of title 40, United States Code (com9 monly referred to as the ‘Davis-Bacon Act’), and with re10 spect to the labor standards specified in such subchapter 

11 the Secretary of Labor shall have the authority and func12 tions set forth in Reorganization Plan Numbered 14 of 

13 1950 (15 Fed. Reg. 3176; 5 U.S.C. App.). 

14 ‘‘(e) LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO15 PRIATIONS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out this section, 

17 there is authorized to be appropriated 

18 $10,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2025, which shall 

19 remain available through fiscal year 2029. 

20 ‘‘(2) RESERVATIONS OF FUNDS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) INDIAN TRIBES.—The Secretary shall 

22 reserve 3 percent of the total amount made 

23 available to carry out this section, for payments 

24 to Indian tribes. 


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1 ‘‘(B) TERRITORIES.—The Secretary shall 

2 reserve 3 percent of the total amount made 

3 available to carry out this section, for payments 

4 to territories. 

5 ‘‘(3) GRANTS FOR INTERMEDIARY ORGANIZA6 TIONS.—Not less than 10 percent and not more 

7 than 15 percent of the total amount made available 

8 to carry out this section may be used to carry out 

9 subsection (c)(2). 

10 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR

11 NEEDS ASSESSMENTS.—Not more than $5,000,000 

12 of the amounts made available to carry out this sec13 tion may be used to carry out subsection (b). 

14 ‘‘(f) DEFINITION OF STATE.—In this section, the 

15 term ‘State’ has the meaning provided in section 419, ex16 cept that it includes the Commonwealth of the Northern 

17 Mariana Islands and any Indian tribe.’’. 

18 (b) EXEMPTION OF TERRITORY GRANTS FROM LIMI19 TATION ON TOTAL PAYMENTS TO THE TERRITORIES.— 

20 Section 1108(a)(2) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1308(a)(2)) 

21 is amended by inserting ‘‘418A(c),’’ after ‘‘413(f),’’. 

Æ 


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