I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1368 

To assist States in providing voluntary high-quality universal prekindergarten 

programs and programs to support infants and toddlers. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 21, 2013 

Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York (for herself and Ms. SCHWARTZ) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To assist States in providing voluntary high-quality universal 

prekindergarten programs and programs to support infants and toddlers. 

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 ‘‘Prepare All Kids Act 

5 of 2013’’. 

6 SEC. 2. HIGH-QUALITY PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAMS. 

7 Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

8 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating part I as part J; and 


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1 (2) by inserting after part H the following: 

2 ‘‘PART I—HIGH-QUALITY PREKINDERGARTEN 

3 PROGRAMS 

4 ‘‘SEC. 1841. FINDINGS. 

5 ‘‘Congress makes the following findings: 

6 ‘‘(1) Investments in children and early child7 hood development education should be a national 

8 priority. 

9 ‘‘(2) State-funded preschool is the most rapidly 

10 expanding segment of the United States educational 

11 system, but in many States a lack of stable funding 

12 poses an enormous threat to the provision or con13 tinuation of high-quality preschool. 

14 ‘‘(3) Researchers, educators, and economists 

15 have long noted an achievement gap for low-income 

16 and minority students as compared to their more ad17 vantaged peers that is often already evident when 

18 children enter school for the first time. 

19 ‘‘(4) One study showed that before entering 

20 kindergarten, the average cognitive scores of pre21 school-age children in the highest socioeconomic 

22 group are 60 percent above the average scores of 

23 preschool-age children in the lowest socioeconomic 

24 group. 


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1 ‘‘(5) For low-income preschoolers, research 

2 shows that high-quality early education and develop3 ment is vital to closing the achievement gap between 

4 them and their more advantaged peers. 

5 ‘‘(6) Numerous studies have shown that high6 quality preschool programs— 

7 ‘‘(A) improve a number of specific life out8 comes for children; and 

9 ‘‘(B) are cost-effective. 

10 ‘‘(7) The provision of high-quality prekinder11 garten is a cost-effective investment for children and 

12 for the Nation. Research shows that for every $1 in13 vested in high-quality early childhood programs, tax14 payers save up to $7 in crime, welfare, remedial and 

15 special education, and other costs. 

16 ‘‘(8) High-quality early education increases aca17 demic success for schoolchildren who received that 

18 education by— 

19 ‘‘(A) improving skills in areas such as fol20 lowing directions and problem solving; 

21 ‘‘(B) improving students’ performance on 

22 standardized tests; 

23 ‘‘(C) reducing grade repetition; 

24 ‘‘(D) reducing the number of students 

25 placed in special education; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) increasing secondary school gradua2 tion rates. 

3 ‘‘(9) High-quality early education promotes re4 sponsible behavior by teens and adults who received 

5 that education by— 

6 ‘‘(A) reducing crime, delinquency, and 

7 unhealthy behaviors such as smoking and drug 

8 use; 

9 ‘‘(B) lowering rates of teen pregnancy; 

10 ‘‘(C) leading to greater employment and 

11 higher wages for adults; and 

12 ‘‘(D) contributing to more stable families. 

13 ‘‘(10) High-quality prekindergarten programs 

14 prepare children to— 

15 ‘‘(A) succeed in school; 

16 ‘‘(B) achieve higher levels of education; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(C) become citizens who— 

19 ‘‘(i) earn more in adulthood; 

20 ‘‘(ii) compete in the global economy; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(iii) contribute to our national pros23 perity. 

24 ‘‘(11) The gap in developmental progress prior 

25 to preschool is significant for thousands of young 


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1 children, and needs to be addressed in order to have 

2 a strong foundation for children’s progress in pre3 school and later years. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 1842. DEFINITIONS. 

5 ‘‘In this part: 

6 ‘‘(1) CHILD.—The term ‘child’ means an indi7 vidual between the ages of birth and the legal entry 

8 age for which the State provides free kindergarten. 

9 ‘‘(2) FULL-DAY.—The term ‘full-day’ means a 

10 school day that is equivalent to a full school day at 

11 the public elementary schools in the State. 

12 ‘‘(3) POVERTY LINE.—The term ‘poverty line’ 

13 has the meaning given the term in section 673(2) of 

14 the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 

15 9902(2)) and includes any revision required by that 

16 section. 

17 ‘‘(4) PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM.—The term 

18 ‘prekindergarten program’ means a program that— 

19 ‘‘(A) serves children who have attained the 

20 State’s legal age for State-funded prekinder21 garten; 

22 ‘‘(B) addresses all domains, including chil23 dren’s cognitive, social, emotional, and physical 

24 development and approaches to learning; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) helps prepare such children for a suc2 cessful transition to kindergarten. 

3 ‘‘(5) PREKINDERGARTEN TEACHER.—The term 

4 ‘prekindergarten teacher’ means an individual who 

5 teaches in a prekindergarten program and— 

6 ‘‘(A) has a baccalaureate degree with a 

7 specialization in early childhood education or 

8 early childhood development; or 

9 ‘‘(B) during the 6-year period following the 

10 first date on which the individual is employed 

11 as a teacher in a prekindergarten program as12 sisted under this part, is working toward such 

13 degree. 

14 ‘‘(6) QUALIFIED PREKINDERGARTEN PRO15 VIDER.—The term ‘qualified prekindergarten pro16 vider’ includes a provider of a prekindergarten pro17 gram, a Head Start agency, a provider of a child 

18 care program, a school, or other entities providing 

19 prekindergarten services for eligible children that— 

20 ‘‘(A) is in existence on the date of the 

21 qualification determination; 

22 ‘‘(B) has demonstrated experience in pro23 viding early childhood education services to chil24 dren; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) has met applicable requirements 

2 under State or local law that are designed to 

3 protect the health and safety of children and 

4 that are applicable to child care providers, or 

5 similar health and safety standards for public 

6 elementary and secondary schools. 

7 ‘‘(7) STATE ADVISORY COUNCIL ON EARLY

8 CHILDHOOD EDUCATION AND CARE.—The term 

9 ‘State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Edu10 cation and Care’ means the State Advisory Council 

11 on Early Childhood Education and Care designated 

12 or established under section 642B of the Head Start 

13 Act (42 U.S.C. 9837b) for a State. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 1843. PROGRAM AUTHORIZATION. 

15 ‘‘(a) PREKINDERGARTEN INCENTIVE FUND.—The 

16 Secretary of Education, in collaboration and consultation 

17 with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall 

18 create a Prekindergarten Incentive Fund, to be adminis19 tered by the Secretary of Education. 

20 ‘‘(b) GRANTS.—In administering the Fund, the Sec21 retary shall award grants to eligible States based on a for22 mula established by the Secretary in accordance with sub23 section (c), to pay for the Federal share of the cost of 

24 awarding subgrants to qualified prekindergarten providers 


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1 to establish, expand, or enhance voluntary high-quality 

2 full-day prekindergarten programs. 

3 ‘‘(c) MINIMUM ALLOTMENT.—No State shall receive 

4 a grant allotment under subsection (b) for a fiscal year 

5 that is less than one-half of 1 percent of the total amount 

6 made available to carry out this part for such fiscal year. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 1844. STATE APPLICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS. 

8 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATED STATE AGENCY.—To be eligible to 

9 receive a grant under this part, a State shall designate 

10 a State agency to administer the State program of assist11 ance for prekindergarten programs funded through the 

12 grant, including receiving and administering funds and 

13 monitoring the programs. 

14 ‘‘(b) STATE APPLICATION.—In order for a State to 

15 be eligible to receive a grant under this part, the des16 ignated State agency shall submit an application to the 

17 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing 

18 such information as the Secretary may reasonably require, 

19 including— 

20 ‘‘(1) an assurance that the State will award 

21 subgrants for prekindergarten programs in amounts 

22 that are sufficient to provide a high-quality pre23 kindergarten experience; 

24 ‘‘(2) an assurance that not less than 25 percent 

25 of the qualified prekindergarten providers receiving 


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1 such subgrants will be providers of community-based 

2 programs; 

3 ‘‘(3) a description of the number of children in 

4 the State who are eligible for the prekindergarten 

5 programs and the needs that will be served through 

6 the prekindergarten programs; 

7 ‘‘(4) a description of how the State will ensure 

8 that the subgrants are awarded to a wide range of 

9 types of qualified prekindergarten providers; 

10 ‘‘(5) a description of how the designated State 

11 agency will collaborate and coordinate activities with 

12 the State Advisory Council on Early Childhood Edu13 cation and Care, State-funded providers of pre14 kindergarten programs, providers of federally funded 

15 programs such as Head Start agencies, local edu16 cational agencies, and child care providers; 

17 ‘‘(6) a description of how the State will ensure, 

18 through a monitoring process, that qualified pre19 kindergarten providers receiving the subgrants pro20 vide prekindergarten programs that meet the stand21 ards of high-quality early education, and use funds 

22 appropriately; 

23 ‘‘(7) a description of how the State will meet 

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1 cluding families at or below 200 percent of the pov2 erty line; 

3 ‘‘(8) a description of how the State will meet 

4 the needs of working parents; and 

5 ‘‘(9) a description of how the State will assist 

6 in providing professional development assistance to 

7 prekindergarten teachers and teacher aides. 

8 ‘‘(c) STATE AND FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

10 the cost described in section 1843(b) shall be 50 

11 percent. The State shall provide the non-Federal 

12 share of the cost in cash. 

13 ‘‘(2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The State shall 

14 provide the non-Federal share of the cost described 

15 in section 1843(b) in cash. A State may include, as 

16 the State’s non-Federal share, State funds des17 ignated for State prekindergarten programs or to 

18 supplement Head Start programs, but may not in19 clude any funds that are attributed as matching 

20 funds, as part of a non-Federal share, or as a main21 tenance of effort requirement, for any other Federal 

22 program. 

23 ‘‘(d) SUPPLEMENTARY FEDERAL FUNDING.—Funds 

24 made available under this part may be used only to supple25 ment and not supplant other Federal, State, local, or priVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:33 Mar 30, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1368.IH H1368

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1 vate funds that would, in the absence of the funds made 

2 available under this part, be made available for early child3 hood programs. 

4 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—A State that re5 ceives a grant under this part for a fiscal year shall main6 tain the expenditures of the State for early childhood pro7 grams at a level not less than the level of such expendi8 tures of the State for the preceding fiscal year. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 1845. STATE SET ASIDES AND EXPENDITURES. 

10 ‘‘(a) INFANT AND TODDLER SET ASIDE.—Notwith11 standing section 1843, a State shall set aside not less than 

12 15 percent of the funds made available through a grant 

13 awarded under this part for the purpose of funding high14 quality early childhood development programs for children 

15 from birth through age 3. Funds made available under 

16 this subsection may also be used for professional develop17 ment for teachers and teacher aides in classrooms for chil18 dren from birth through age 3. 

19 ‘‘(b) EXTENDED DAY AND EXTENDED YEAR SET

20 ASIDE.—Notwithstanding section 1843, a State shall set 

21 aside not less than 10 percent of the funds made available 

22 through a grant awarded under this part for the purpose 

23 of extending the hours of early childhood development pro24 grams to create extended day and extended year pro25 grams. 


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1 ‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Not more than 5 

2 percent of the funds made available through a grant 

3 awarded under this part may be used for administrative 

4 expenses, including monitoring. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 1846. LOCAL APPLICATIONS. 

6 ‘‘To be eligible to receive a subgrant under this part, 

7 a qualified prekindergarten provider shall submit an appli8 cation to the designated State agency at such time, in such 

9 manner, and containing such information as the agency 

10 may reasonably require, including— 

11 ‘‘(1) a description of how the qualified pre12 kindergarten provider will meet the diverse needs of 

13 children in the community to be served, including 

14 children with disabilities, children whose native lan15 guage is not English, children with other special 

16 needs, children in the State foster care system, and 

17 homeless children; 

18 ‘‘(2) a description of how the qualified pre19 kindergarten provider will serve eligible children who 

20 are not served through similar services or programs; 

21 ‘‘(3) a description of a plan for actively involv22 ing parents and families in the prekindergarten pro23 gram and the success of their children in the pro24 gram; 


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1 ‘‘(4) a description of how children in the pre2 kindergarten program, and their parents and fami3 lies, will receive referrals to, or assistance with, ac4 cessing supportive services provided within the com5 munity; 

6 ‘‘(5) a description of how the qualified pre7 kindergarten provider collaborates with the State 

8 Advisory Council on Early Childhood Education and 

9 Care and providers of other programs serving chil10 dren and families, including Head Start agencies, 

11 providers of child care programs, and local edu12 cational agencies, to meet the needs of children, 

13 families, and working families, as appropriate; and 

14 ‘‘(6) a description of how the qualified pre15 kindergarten provider will collaborate with local edu16 cational agencies to ensure a smooth transition for 

17 participating students from the prekindergarten pro18 gram to kindergarten and early elementary edu19 cation. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 1847. LOCAL PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAM RE21 QUIREMENTS. 

22 ‘‘(a) MANDATORY USES OF FUNDS.—A qualified pre23 kindergarten provider that receives a subgrant under this 

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1 lish, expand, or enhance prekindergarten programs for 

2 children who are ages 3 through 5, including— 

3 ‘‘(1) providing a prekindergarten program that 

4 supports children’s cognitive, social, emotional, and 

5 physical development and approaches to learning, 

6 and helps prepare children for a successful transi7 tion to kindergarten; and 

8 ‘‘(2) purchasing educational equipment, includ9 ing educational materials, necessary to provide a 

10 high-quality prekindergarten program. 

11 ‘‘(b) PERMISSIBLE USE OF FUNDS.—A qualified pre12 kindergarten provider that receives a subgrant under this 

13 part may use funds received through the grant to— 

14 ‘‘(1) extend part-day prekindergarten programs 

15 to full-day prekindergarten programs and year-round 

16 programs; 

17 ‘‘(2) pay for transporting students to and from 

18 a prekindergarten program; and 

19 ‘‘(3) provide professional development assist20 ance to prekindergarten teachers and teacher aides. 

21 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—A qualified pre22 kindergarten provider that receives a subgrant under this 

23 part shall carry out a high-quality prekindergarten pro24 gram by— 


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1 ‘‘(1) maintaining a maximum class size of 20 

2 children, with at least 1 prekindergarten teacher per 

3 classroom; 

4 ‘‘(2) ensuring that the ratio of children to pre5 kindergarten teachers and teacher aides shall not ex6 ceed 10 to 1; 

7 ‘‘(3) utilizing a prekindergarten curriculum that 

8 is research- and evidence-based, developmentally ap9 propriate, and designed to support children’s cog10 nitive, social, emotional, and physical development, 

11 and approaches to learning; and 

12 ‘‘(4) ensuring that prekindergarten teachers 

13 meet the requirements of this part. 

14 ‘‘SEC. 1848. REPORTING. 

15 ‘‘(a) QUALIFIED PREKINDERGARTEN PROVIDER RE16 PORTS.—Each qualified prekindergarten provider that re17 ceives a subgrant from a State under this part shall sub18 mit an annual report, to the designated State agency, that 

19 reviews the effectiveness of the prekindergarten program 

20 provided. Such annual report shall include— 

21 ‘‘(1) data specifying the number and ages of en22 rolled children, and the family income, race, gender, 

23 disability, and native language of such children; 

24 ‘‘(2) a description of— 

25 ‘‘(A) the curriculum used by the program; 


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1 ‘‘(B) how the curriculum supports the en2 rolled children’s cognitive, social, emotional, and 

3 physical development and approaches to learn4 ing; and 

5 ‘‘(C) how the curriculum is appropriate for 

6 children of the culture, language, and ages of 

7 the children served; and 

8 ‘‘(3) a statement of all sources of funding re9 ceived by the program, including Federal, State, 

10 local, and private funds. 

11 ‘‘(b) STATE REPORTS.—Each State that receives a 

12 grant under this part shall submit an annual report to 

13 the Secretary detailing the effectiveness of all prekinder14 garten programs funded under this part in the State. 

15 ‘‘(c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary shall 

16 submit an annual report to Congress that describes the 

17 State programs of assistance for prekindergarten pro18 grams funded under this part. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 1849. PROHIBITED USE OF ASSESSMENTS FOR YOUNG 

20 CHILDREN. 

21 ‘‘Funds available under this part, including funds 

22 provided as the non-Federal share required under section 

23 1844(c)(2), may not be used for assessments of children 

24 in prekindergarten programs or early childhood develop25 ment programs for any of the following: 


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1 ‘‘(a) Assessments that provide or lead to rewards or 

2 sanctions for individual children, teachers, programs, or 

3 schools. 

4 ‘‘(b) A single assessment used as the primary or sole 

5 method for assessing program effectiveness. 

6 ‘‘(c) Evaluating children other than for— 

7 ‘‘(1) improving instruction or classroom envi8 ronment; 

9 ‘‘(2) targeting high-quality, evidence-based pro10 fessional development; 

11 ‘‘(3) determining the need for health, mental 

12 health, disability, or family support services; 

13 ‘‘(4) informing the quality improvement process 

14 at the State level; 

15 ‘‘(5) program evaluation for the purposes of 

16 program improvement and parent information; or 

17 ‘‘(6) research conducted as part of a national 

18 evaluation. 

19 ‘‘SEC. 1850. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

21 this part such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 

22 2014 through 2018.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

2 (a) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents in 

3 section 2 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

4 of 1965 is amended— 

5 (1) by striking the item relating to the part 

6 heading for part I of title I and inserting the fol7 lowing: 

‘‘PART J—GENERAL PROVISIONS’’; 

8 and 

9 (2) by inserting after the item relating to sec10 tion 1830 the following: 

‘‘PART I—HIGH-QUALITY PREKINDERGARTEN PROGRAMS

‘‘Sec. 1841. Findings. 

‘‘Sec. 1842. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 1843. Program authorization. 

‘‘Sec. 1844. State applications and requirements. 

‘‘Sec. 1845. State set asides and expenditures. 

‘‘Sec. 1846. Local applications. 

‘‘Sec. 1847. Local prekindergarten program requirements. 

‘‘Sec. 1848. Reporting. 

‘‘Sec. 1849. Prohibited use of assessments for young children. 

‘‘Sec. 1850. Authorization of appropriations.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING PROVISIONS.—Sections 1304(c)(2) 

12 and 1415(a)(2)(C) of the Elementary and Secondary Edu13 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6394(c)(2), 6435(a)(2)(C)) 

14 are each amended by striking ‘‘part I’’ and inserting ‘‘part 

15 J’’. 

Æ 


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