I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6391 
To provide emergency child care in the Gulf Coast Region, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 6, 2006 
Mr. JEFFERSON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To provide emergency child care in the Gulf Coast Region, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Emergency Child Care 
for the Gulf Coast Region Act of 2006’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds as follows: 
(1) Studies have stated that reopening child 
care facilities was crucial for helping parents get 
back to work and businesses to recover. 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
07:00 Dec 09, 2006
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6391.IH
H6391
ccoleman on PROD1PC71 with BILLS
(2) Studies have shown that without available 
and affordable child care economic recovery will be 
greatly impeded and lead to a reduction in worker 
productivity. 
(3) In New Orleans before Hurricanes Katrina 
and Rita, the city had 1,912 day-care slots at 266 
licensed centers, but now 80 percent of those centers 
and 75 percent of those slots are gone. 
(4) The National Association of Child Care Re-
source and Referral Agencies reported in a study 
published by the Mississippi State University Early 
Childhood Institute that between 62 to 94 percent of 
the licensed child care slots in the three coastal 
counties hardest hit by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita 
in Mississippi were lost. 
(5) In Jackson County, Mississippi, initial as-
sessment found that one-fourth of the county’s li-
censed centers were damaged beyond repair, rep-
resenting 11 percent of the county’s licensed child 
care capacity. Another 39 percent of centers needed 
repairs. 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
07:00 Dec 09, 2006
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6391.IH
H6391
ccoleman on PROD1PC71 with BILLS
TITLE 
I—EMERGENCY 
CHILD 
CARE BUSINESS INCENTIVE 
GRANT PROGRAM FOR THE 
GULF COAST REGION 
SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT. 
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
establish a program to make grants to— 
(1) businesses and consortia in the Gulf Coast 
Region— 
(A) to pay start-up costs incurred to pro-
vide child care services; or 
(B) to provide additional child care serv-
ices needed by the employees of such busi-
nesses; and 
(2) nonprofit business organizations in the Gulf 
Coast Region to provide technical information and 
assistance to enable businesses to provide child care 
services. 
SEC. 102. ELIGIBILITY TO RECEIVE GRANTS. 
To be eligible to receive a grant under section 101, 
a business, nonprofit business organization, or consortium 
shall submit to the Secretary an application in accordance 
with section 103. 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
07:00 Dec 09, 2006
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6391.IH
H6391
ccoleman on PROD1PC71 with BILLS
SEC. 103. APPLICATION. 
The application required by section 102 shall be sub-
mitted by a business, nonprofit business organization, or 
consortium at such time, in such form, and containing 
such information as the Secretary may require by rule, 
except that such application shall contain— 
(1) an assurance that the applicant shall ex-
pend, for the purpose for which such grant is made, 
an amount not less than 10 percent of the amount 
of such grant; 
(2) an assurance that such applicant will ex-
pend such grant for the use specified in paragraph 
(1) or (2) of section 101, as the case may be; 
(3) an assurance that such applicant will em-
ploy strategies to ensure that child care services pro-
vided by such applicant, or provided with the tech-
nical information and assistance made available by 
such applicant, are provided at affordable rates, and 
on an equitable basis, to low- and moderate-income 
employees; 
(4) an assurance that such applicant— 
(A) in the case of a business or consor-
tium, will comply with all State and local licens-
ing requirements applicable to such business or 
consortium concerning the provision of child 
care services; or 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
07:00 Dec 09, 2006
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6391.IH
H6391
ccoleman on PROD1PC71 with BILLS
(B) in the case of a nonprofit business or-
ganization, will employ procedures to ensure 
that technical information and assistance pro-
vided under this title by such business organiza-
tion will be provided only to businesses that 
provide child care services in compliance with 
all State and local licensing requirements appli-
cable to child care providers in such State; and 
(5) in the case of a business or consortium, an 
assurance that if the employees of such applicant do 
not require all the child care services for which such 
grant and the funds required by paragraph (1) are 
to be expended by such applicant, the excess of such 
child care services shall be made available to families 
in the community in which such applicant is located. 
SEC. 104. SELECTION OF GRANTEES. 
For purposes of selecting applicants to receive grants 
under this title, the Secretary shall give priority to busi-
nesses that have fewer than 200 full-time employees. To 
the extent practicable, the Secretary shall— 
(1) make grants equitably under this title to 
applicants located in all geographical regions of the 
United States; and 
(2) give priority to applicants for grants under 
section 101(1). 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
07:00 Dec 09, 2006
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6391.IH
H6391
ccoleman on PROD1PC71 with BILLS
SEC. 105. DEFINITIONS. 
As used in this title: 
(1) BUSINESS.—The term ‘‘business’’ means a 
person engaged in commerce whose primary activity 
is not providing child care services. 
(2) CHILD CARE SERVICES.—The term ‘‘child 
care services’’ means care for a child that is— 
(A) provided on the site at which a parent 
of such child is employed or at a site nearby in 
the community; and 
(B) subsidized at least in part by the busi-
ness that employs such parent. 
(3) CONSORTIUM.—The term ‘‘consortium’’ 
means 4 or more businesses acting jointly. A consor-
tium may also include a nonprofit private organiza-
tion. 
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 
(5) GULF
COAST
REGION.—The term ‘‘Gulf 
Coast Region’’ means the area in which the Presi-
dent has declared that a major disaster exists, in ac-
cordance with section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford 
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
U.S.C. 5170), as a consequence of Hurricanes 
Katrina and Rita. 
VerDate Aug 31 2005 
07:00 Dec 09, 2006
Jkt 059200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H6391.IH
H6391
ccoleman on PROD1PC71 with BILLS