II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5621 

To provide grants to States, Indian Tribes, and Tribal organizations for 

activities to increase the availability of child care options and to support 

the child care workforce, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 19 (legislative day, DECEMBER 16), 2024 

Ms. SMITH introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide grants to States, Indian Tribes, and Tribal organizations for activities to increase the availability of child 

care options and to support the child care workforce, 

and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Childcare Supply Im5 provement Act of 2024’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 


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1 (1) ALLOTMENT PERCENTAGE.—The term ‘‘al2 lotment percentage’’, with respect to a State, means 

3 the allotment percentage determined for the State in 

4 accordance with section 658O(b)(4) of the Child 

5 Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 

6 U.S.C. 9858m(b)(4)). 

7 (2) CHILD.—The term ‘‘child’’ means an indi8 vidual— 

9 (A) who is age 5 or younger; or 

10 (B) who has not yet entered kindergarten. 

11 (3) CHILD WITH A DISABILITY.—The term 

12 ‘‘child with a disability’’ means— 

13 (A) a child with a disability, as defined in 

14 section 602 of the Individuals with Disabilities 

15 Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1401), except the 

16 term ‘‘child’’ shall be limited to a child as de17 fined in paragraph (2); 

18 (B) a child who is eligible for early inter19 vention services under part C of the Individuals 

20 with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 

21 1431 et seq.); 

22 (C) a child who is eligible for services 

23 under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 

24 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794); or 


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1 (D) a child with a disability, as the term 

2 ‘‘disability’’ is defined by the State involved. 

3 (4) CHILD CARE PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘child 

4 care program’’— 

5 (A) means any program— 

6 (i) that provides child care or edu7 cation for children, in any setting or 

8 through any funding source; and 

9 (ii) that is licensed to provide such 

10 care or education under licensing require11 ments applicable in the State or is exempt 

12 from such requirements; and 

13 (B) includes— 

14 (i) any program operated by a center15 based child care provider or a family child 

16 care provider; 

17 (ii) child care provided by relatives, 

18 friends, or neighbor caregivers; 

19 (iii) any preschool program funded by 

20 the Federal Government, a State, or a 

21 local educational agency; or 

22 (iv) a Head Start program, including 

23 an Early Head Start program, under the 

24 Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.). 


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1 (5) CHILD CARE PROVIDER.—The term ‘‘child 

2 care provider’’ means the staff of a child care pro3 gram. 

4 (6) ELIGIBLE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FI5 NANCIAL INSTITUTION.—The term ‘‘eligible commu6 nity development financial institution’’ means— 

7 (A) a community development financial in8 stitution (as defined in section 103 of the Com9 munity Development Banking and Financial In10 stitutions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702)) that 

11 has been certified by the Community Develop12 ment Financial Institutions Fund under section 

13 1805.201 of title 12, Code of Federal Regula14 tions, or any successor regulation; or 

15 (B) an organization that— 

16 (i) is described in section 501(c)(3) of 

17 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

18 (ii) is exempt from taxation under 

19 section 501(a) of such Code; and 

20 (iii) has demonstrated experience in— 

21 (I) providing technical or finan22 cial assistance for the acquisition, con23 struction, renovation, or improvement 

24 of child care facilities; 


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1 (II) providing technical, financial, 

2 or managerial assistance to child care 

3 providers; and 

4 (III) securing private sources of 

5 capital financing for child care or 

6 other low-income community develop7 ment. 

8 (7) FAMILY CHILD CARE PROVIDER.—The term 

9 ‘‘family child care provider’’ has the meaning given 

10 the term in section 658P of the Child Care and De11 velopment Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

12 9858n). 

13 (8) INDIAN TRIBE; TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.— 

14 The terms ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ and ‘‘Tribal organiza15 tion’’ have the meanings given the terms ‘‘Indian 

16 tribe’’ and ‘‘tribal organization’’ in section 658P of 

17 the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 

18 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858n). 

19 (9) INTERRATER RELIABILITY.—The term 

20 ‘‘interrater reliability’’ has the meaning given the 

21 term in section 637 of the Head Start Act (42 

22 U.S.C. 9832). 

23 (10) LOCAL OR REGIONAL ENTITY.—The term 

24 ‘‘local or regional entity’’ means— 


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1 (A) an agency administering a Head Start 

2 program, including an Early Head Start pro3 gram, under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 

4 9831 et seq.); 

5 (B) a State or local agency responsible for 

6 administering a child care program, including a 

7 local agency responsible for administering a 

8 child care program that is a home visiting pro9 gram for children; 

10 (C) a local early childhood advisory council 

11 or coalition; 

12 (D) a local or regional child care resource 

13 and referral organization described in section 

14 658E(c)(3)(B)(iii) of the Child Care and Devel15 opment Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

16 9858c(c)(3)(B)(iii)); 

17 (E) an eligible community development fi18 nancial institution; 

19 (F) a nonprofit organization, professional 

20 association, or community-based organization 

21 with expertise in child care; or 

22 (G) a consortium of entities described in 

23 any of subparagraphs (A) through (F). 

24 (11) SCHOOL LUNCH FACTOR.—The term 

25 ‘‘school lunch factor’’ has the meaning given the 


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1 term in section 658O(b)(3) of the Child Care and 

2 Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

3 9858m(b)(3)). 

4 (12) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

5 means the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

6 (13) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean7 ing given the term in section 658P of the Child Care 

8 and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 

9 U.S.C. 9858n). 

10 (14) YOUNG CHILD FACTOR.—The term ‘‘young 

11 child factor’’ has the meaning given the term in sec12 tion 658O(b)(2) of the Child Care and Development 

13 Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858m(b)(2)). 

14 SEC. 3. CHILD CARE SUPPLY IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM. 

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 

16 a program to award to States, Indian Tribes, and Tribal 

17 organizations— 

18 (1) grants for child care facilities in accordance 

19 with section 4; and 

20 (2) grants for the purpose of carrying out the 

21 activities described in section 5. 

22 (b) APPLICATION PROCESS.—A State, Indian Tribe, 

23 or Tribal organization seeking a grant under this Act shall 

24 submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in 


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1 such manner, and containing such information as the Sec2 retary may reasonably require. 

3 (c) GRANT AMOUNTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each State, Indian Tribe, or 

5 Tribal organization that submits an application 

6 meeting the requirements of the Secretary under 

7 subsection (b) shall be entitled to a grant in an 

8 amount that is determined in accordance with the 

9 reservations and allotments under this subsection. 

10 (2) AMOUNTS RESERVED.— 

11 (A) TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS.—The 

12 Secretary shall reserve not to exceed one-half of 

13 1 percent of the amount appropriated under 

14 section 8 in each fiscal year for payments to 

15 Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands of 

16 the United States, and the Commonwealth of 

17 the Northern Mariana Islands to be allotted in 

18 accordance with their respective needs. 

19 (B) INDIAN TRIBES.—The Secretary shall 

20 reserve not less than 4 percent of the amount 

21 appropriated under section 8 in each fiscal year 

22 for grants to Indian Tribes and Tribal organi23 zations that submit an application meeting the 

24 requirements of the Secretary under subsection 

25 (b). 


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1 (3) STATE ALLOTMENTS.—From the amount 

2 appropriated under section 8 for each fiscal year 

3 that is remaining after the reservations under para4 graph (2), the Secretary shall allot to each State an 

5 amount equal to the sum of— 

6 (A) an amount that bears the same ratio 

7 to 50 percent of such remainder as the product 

8 of the young child factor of the State and the 

9 allotment percentage of the State bears to the 

10 sum of the corresponding products for all 

11 States; and 

12 (B) an amount that bears the same ratio 

13 to 50 percent of such remainder as the product 

14 of the school lunch factor of the State and the 

15 allotment percentage of the State bears to the 

16 sum of the corresponding products for all 

17 States. 

18 SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR CHILD CARE FACILITIES. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—A grant awarded under section 

20 3(a)(1) shall be used to award a subgrant to an eligible 

21 community development financial institution, which may 

22 partner with other local or regional entities, for the pur23 pose of— 


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1 (1) providing technical or financial assistance 

2 for the acquisition, construction, or improvements of 

3 child care facilities; 

4 (2) providing technical, financial, or managerial 

5 assistance to child care programs; 

6 (3) subject to subsection (b), renovating child 

7 care facilities to comply with State or local health 

8 and safety requirements; 

9 (4) establishing low-cost— 

10 (A) loan programs for child care programs; 

11 or 

12 (B) loan forgiveness programs for child 

13 care programs in accordance with subsection 

14 (c); or 

15 (5) developing and piloting local, voluntary best 

16 practices related to community zoning standards to 

17 support the provision and expansion of child care 

18 services. 

19 (b) RESIDENTIAL RENOVATIONS.—A renovation to a 

20 private residence in which a family child care provider pro21 vides child care services may be supported through a grant 

22 under section 3(a)(1), only if necessary to comply with 

23 State or local health and safety requirements. Such a ren24 ovation may include— 


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1 (1) indoor or outdoor modifications, including 

2 such modifications to support accessibility for chil3 dren with disabilities; or 

4 (2) lead remediation and abatement activities. 

5 (c) LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAMS.—A loan forgive6 ness program supported under subsection (a)(4)(B)— 

7 (1) shall provide loan forgiveness for child care 

8 programs over a period of time; 

9 (2) shall prioritize loan forgiveness for child 

10 care programs that are or become licensed, regu11 lated, or registered under State law and become na12 tionally accredited or rated under a tiered quality 

13 rating system described in section 658G(b)(3) of the 

14 Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 

15 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858e(b)(3)); and 

16 (3) may prioritize child care programs— 

17 (A) providing high-quality care for infants 

18 and toddlers during non-traditional hours; 

19 (B) providing inclusive care for children 

20 with disabilities; 

21 (C) serving children in a geographic area 

22 for which there is a shortage of child care; or 

23 (D) that otherwise meet the needs identi24 fied in the community needs assessment conVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 Jan 25, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5621.IS S5621

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1 ducted by the State, Indian Tribe, or Tribal or2 ganization under section 6. 

3 SEC. 5. GRANTS FOR QUALITY SERVICES, COMPLIANCE RE4 QUIREMENTS, BUSINESS SUPPORT, AND AD5 MINISTRATIVE IMPROVEMENT ACTIVITIES. 

6 (a) SUBGRANTS.—A State, Indian Tribe, or Tribal 

7 organization awarded a grant under section 3(a)(2) may 

8 make subgrants to, or partner with, local or regional enti9 ties to carry out any activity supported by the grant in 

10 accordance with this section. 

11 (b) ACTIVITIES.—A grant awarded under section 

12 3(a)(2) shall be used for any of the following activities: 

13 (1) Activities to provide— 

14 (A) pathways for child care programs oper15 ating legally without a child care license to ob16 tain such license; 

17 (B) pre-licensing orientation for individuals 

18 seeking a child care license; 

19 (C) technical assistance throughout the 

20 child care licensing process; or 

21 (D) pathways to accreditation of child care 

22 programs and quality improvement for such 

23 programs, including entry into or improvement 

24 on a tiered quality rating system described in 

25 section 658G(b)(3) of the Child Care and DeVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 Jan 25, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5621.IS S5621

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1 velopment Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

2 9858e(b)(3)). 

3 (2) Activities, in accordance with subsection (c), 

4 to provide ongoing, job-embedded professional devel5 opment for child care programs, including structured 

6 training, coaching, mentoring, professional develop7 ment visits, and peer support activities, or profes8 sional opportunities, to reduce isolation of child care 

9 providers, including through cohort-based models. 

10 (3) Activities to provide business start-up sup11 port for child care programs as described in sub12 section (d). 

13 (4) Activities to improve the administration of 

14 child care programs, by States, Indian Tribes, or 

15 Tribal organizations, which shall include activities as 

16 described in subsection (e). 

17 (c) PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES.— 

18 (1) ACCESSIBILITY.—The professional develop19 ment activities described in subsection (b)(2) shall— 

20 (A) be appropriate, relevant, accessible, 

21 and affordable for family child care providers in 

22 home-based settings; and 

23 (B) be culturally responsive and linguis24 tically appropriate for the applicable commu25 nity. 


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1 (2) ACTIVITIES.—Such professional develop2 ment activities may include— 

3 (A) assistance for child care providers in 

4 obtaining qualified, temporary substitute child 

5 care or reimbursing such child care providers 

6 for obtaining such child care; 

7 (B) the creation, expansion, or replication 

8 of staffed family child care networks; 

9 (C) the creation, expansion, or replication 

10 of infant-toddler specialist networks; and 

11 (D) cross-sector training and partnership 

12 opportunities for teachers and staff of— 

13 (i) Head Start programs, including 

14 Early Head Start programs, under the 

15 Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.); 

16 (ii) early intervention programs; 

17 (iii) infant and early childhood mental 

18 health programs; 

19 (iv) home visiting child care programs; 

20 (v) State-funded prekindergarten and 

21 preschool programs that receive funds 

22 under part A of title I of the Elementary 

23 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

24 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.); or 

25 (vi) any other child care program. 


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1 (d) BUSINESS START-UP ACTIVITIES.—The busi2 ness-start up activities described in subsection (b)(3)— 

3 (1) shall— 

4 (A) promote sound, sustainable business 

5 practices, including business planning practices, 

6 to child care programs, including through ori7 entations for child care programs and related 

8 programs, such as the child and adult care food 

9 program established under section 17 of the 

10 Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act 

11 (42 U.S.C. 1766); 

12 (B) provide financial aid or technical as13 sistance to assist child care providers in com14 plying with licensing requirements, or health 

15 and safety requirements; 

16 (C) provide technical assistance or finan17 cial assistance for costs associated with begin18 ning a business, including costs for equipment 

19 or supplies, including diapers and diapering 

20 supplies; and 

21 (D) develop shared service models for child 

22 care programs with respect to business activi23 ties including accounting, marketing, commu24 nications, health insurance, and legal support 

25 activities; and 


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1 (2) may include activities to promote innovative 

2 solutions or support the development of innovative 

3 models or arrangements for child care providers, 

4 such as co-located child care programs or employer5 sponsored child care programs, which may be identi6 fied through the community needs assessment con7 ducted by the State, Indian Tribe, or Tribal organi8 zation under section 6. 

9 (e) IMPROVING ADMINISTRATION.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The activities described in 

11 subsection (b)(4) shall include activities to— 

12 (A) improve data collection with respect to 

13 child care services, including the collection of 

14 information by States under section 658K of 

15 the Child Care and Development Block Grant 

16 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858i); 

17 (B) improve coordination between States 

18 and Indian Tribes or Tribal organizations re19 ceiving assistance under such Act, the Head 

20 Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), or this Act; 

21 (C) improve coordination between States 

22 and local governments with respect to licensing 

23 and other regulatory requirements for child 

24 care providers, and, if applicable, the State’s 

25 tiered quality rating system described in section 


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1 658G(b)(3) of the Child Care and Development 

2 Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

3 9858e(b)(3)); 

4 (D) increase interrater reliability in licens5 ing inspections or other evaluations of child 

6 care programs by training licensing inspectors 

7 of child care providers and providing such in8 spectors with additional professional develop9 ment; 

10 (E) identify and eliminate barriers to child 

11 care licensure, such as through reducing fees 

12 for background checks, translating licensing 

13 regulations into languages other than English, 

14 collaborating with housing authorities or local 

15 governments, or addressing other barriers that 

16 may be identified through the community needs 

17 assessment conducted under section 6; or 

18 (F) improve the functionality of activities 

19 related to State and local regulatory require20 ments, including requirements with respect to 

21 licensing and licensing inspections, in accord22 ance with paragraph (2). 

23 (2) FUNCTIONALITY ACTIVITIES.—The activi24 ties described in paragraph (1)(F) may include deVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 Jan 25, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5621.IS S5621

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1 veloping modern technology in accordance with para2 graph (3) to assist and improve with— 

3 (A) outreach, including communication to 

4 child care providers of— 

5 (i) licensing and other regulatory re6 quirements described in subparagraph (K) 

7 of section 658E(c)(2) of the Child Care 

8 and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 

9 (42 U.S.C. 9858c(c)(2)); and 

10 (ii) health and safety requirements de11 scribed in subparagraph (I) of such sec12 tion; 

13 (B) enforcement of the requirements de14 scribed in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph 

15 (A); 

16 (C) assistance to child care providers in 

17 complying with such requirements; or 

18 (D) efforts to streamline State and local 

19 paperwork requirements for child care providers 

20 without diminishing any health and safety re21 quirements applicable to such providers. 

22 (3) MODERN TECHNOLOGY.—Any modern tech23 nology developed under paragraph (2) shall— 


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1 (A) focus on the needs of child care pro2 viders subject to the requirements described in 

3 clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (2)(A); and 

4 (B) take into consideration, to the extent 

5 possible, best practices related to technology de6 velopment practices, including user-centered de7 sign, as detailed in applicable Federal guide8 lines, such as the Digital Services Playbook. 

9 SEC. 6. COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each State, Indian Tribe, or 

11 Tribal organization receiving a grant under this Act shall, 

12 prior to undertaking any activity supported by such a 

13 grant, conduct an assessment of the needs of the State, 

14 Indian Tribe, or Tribal organization with respect to issues 

15 including— 

16 (1) the overall supply of child care programs, 

17 including the supply of high-quality child care pro18 grams; 

19 (2) geographic shortages and diversity of child 

20 care providers; 

21 (3) child care offered during nontraditional 

22 hours; 

23 (4) cultural and linguistic needs of children, 

24 parents, and child care providers; and 


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1 (5) relevant trends in child care supply and de2 mand. 

3 (b) CONSULTATION.—In preparing the needs assess4 ment required under subsection (a), the State, Indian 

5 Tribe, or Tribal organization shall consult with parents, 

6 child care stakeholder groups, relevant local governments, 

7 interested businesses and employers, related professional 

8 associations, and community-based organizations. 

9 (c) RESULTS.—A State, Indian Tribe, or Tribal orga10 nization receiving a grant under this Act shall— 

11 (1) use the results of the needs assessment re12 quired under subsection (a) to determine how to use 

13 the funds awarded through such grant to address 

14 the needs of children, parents, and child care pro15 viders; and 

16 (2) to the greatest extent possible, use the 

17 funds awarded through such grant in proportion to 

18 the needs determined through such assessment to in19 crease the supply of high-quality child care, which 

20 may include a focus on a particular issue described 

21 in any of paragraphs (1) through (5) of subsection 

22 (a). 

23 SEC. 7. ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS. 

24 (a) SUPPLEMENT AND NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds 

25 made available through a grant or subgrant under this Act 


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1 shall supplement, and not supplant, other Federal, State, 

2 or local funds that are available for child care programs 

3 or other family engagement programs. 

4 (b) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—A State, Indian 

5 Tribe, or Tribal organization that receives funds through 

6 a grant under this Act for a fiscal year shall maintain 

7 the fiscal effort provided by the State, Indian Tribe, or 

8 Tribal organization for the activities supported by such 

9 funds at a level equal to or greater than the level of such 

10 fiscal effort for the preceding fiscal year. 

11 (c) VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION.—A State, Indian 

12 Tribe, or Tribal organization that receives a grant under 

13 this Act shall ensure that family participation in any pro14 gram supported by such grant shall be voluntary and not 

15 preclude the family from participating in any other Fed16 eral, State, or local program. 

17 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

18 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

19 as may be necessary to carry out this Act. 

Æ 


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