‘‘(iii) the steps to be taken by the
State or grantees in accordance with guid-
ance provided by the Secretary if the speci-
fied benchmarks are not achieved.
‘‘(H) COORDINATION WITH ACTIVITIES TO
IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF CHILD CARE.—The
State plan shall specify the methods to be used
to coordinate activities under this section and
section 658G(a), including coordination of plan-
ning and of performance goals and measures, in
order to maximize the effectiveness of both pro-
grams.
‘‘(c) ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES.—A model states early
learning program under a State plan under this section
may provide for any or all of the following activities:
‘‘(1) INFORMATION AND RESOURCES.—
‘‘(A) PARENTING
EDUCATION.—Provision
of parenting education, including use of or col-
laboration with Even Start or similar programs,
for parents of young children by means includ-
ing use of community-based resource centers,
family literacy programs with parenting edu-
cation components, collaboration with early
intervention and preschool providers of services
for children, public elementary schools, centers
that serve children with special health care
needs or disabilities and their families, and
home visiting programs.
‘‘(B) INFORMATION AND REFERRAL.—Ini-
tiatives to develop or increase the availability of
consumer education information and referral
services and other resources to assist parents to
locate and assess the quality of available child
care services.
‘‘(C) FAMILY CHILD CARE NETWORKS.—
Development of support networks, information
and referral services, and other supportive serv-
ices addressing needs of family child care pro-
viders for access to such resources as education,
training, and community support services.
‘‘(2) QUALITY AND AVAILABILITY.—
‘‘(A) PROVIDER
TRAINING.—Training of
child care personnel, which may include train-
ing in early childhood development, early lit-
eracy, health, nutrition, hygiene, first-aid and
safety, best practices for serving children with
disabilities in child care, and other appropriate
matters.
‘‘(B) IMPROVED
STAFFING
RATIOS.—Ini-
tiatives to increase ratios of child care staff to
children in care and to reduce child care group
sizes.
‘‘(C) LICENSING AND ACCREDITATION AS-
SISTANCE.—Assistance to entities and individ-
uals in meeting applicable child care accredita-
tion and licensing requirements and in obtain-
ing licensing or accreditation.
‘‘(D) HEALTH
SERVICES.—Improving co-
ordination of child care with appropriate health
services including health and mental health con-
sultations, hearing and vision testing, and im-
munizations, by methods such as co-location of
health and child care services, referrals of chil-
dren in child care to health care providers or
screening services, and transfer of child health
records to public school at school entry. Serv-
ices under this subparagraph shall not include
direct provision of or payment for health care
services.
‘‘(E) CARE FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL
NEEDS.—Increasing the availability and quality
of child care for young children with special
health care needs, developmental delays, and
disabilities; and coordinating with early inter-
vention and preschool special education services.
‘‘(F) SALARY
AND
BENEFIT
ENHANCE-
MENT.—Assistance to child care programs to
increase the quality and continuity of care by
retaining highly qualified child care staff work-
ing directly with children through enhanced
compensation.
‘‘(G) MONITORING
AND
TECHNICAL
AS-
SISTANCE.—Technical assistance to grantees,
and monitoring of programs, assisted under this
section. State expenditures under this subpara-
graph shall not exceed a percentage of total
State expenditures for the program under this
section equal to 10 percent for each of fiscal
years 1999 through 2001, and 5 percent for fis-
cal year 2002 and each succeeding fiscal year.
‘‘(H) 
COMPREHENSIVE
BACKGROUND
CHECKS.—To pay costs incurred to obtain com-
prehensive background checks required by sec-
tion 658T(b)(2)(B)(I),
‘‘(I) SMALL GRANT PROGRAM.—Funding in
the aggregate amount of $1,000,000 or 5 per-
cent of such State’s allotment, whichever is less,
may be used to make small grants to persons
on a competitive basis, established by the Sec-
retary by rule, to be used for improvments and
startup costs (as defined by the Secretary by
rule) incurred to become eligible childcare pro-
viders.’’.
(c) ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 658K(a)(2) of the
Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42
U.S.C. 9858i(a)(2)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara-
graph (D);
(2) by striking the period at the end of sub-
paragraph (E) and inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by inserting after and below subparagraph
(E) the following subparagraph:
‘‘(F) the model states early learning pro-
gram under section 658T, including—
‘‘(i) the number and average dollar
amount of grants awarded;
‘‘(ii) the number, average dollar
amount, and percentage of the total State
award of such grants made to low-income
communities;
‘‘(iii) the number of early learning
programs;
‘‘(iv) the number of children served
with special health care needs, disabilities
or developmental delays;
‘‘(v) the number of early learning pro-
grams that assist children with special
needs;
‘‘(vi) progress toward achievement of
each performance goal, for each specific,
quantifiable and measurable objective;
‘‘(vii) expenditures for each allowable
activity listed in section 658T(c), total ex-
penditures and, to the extent feasible, the
volume or frequency of such activity and
the average expenditure per unit of such
activity; and
‘‘(viii) with respect to any allowable
activity listed in section 658T(c) for which
expenditures are made by the State both
under section 658G(a) and under section
658T, the amount expended under each
such section; and
‘‘(ix) such other data as the Secretary
may require;.’’.
TITLE VI—CHILD CARE WORKER
INCENTIVES
SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ‘‘Child Care Worker
Incentive Act of 1999’’.