help address the child’s identified needs through 
health insurance or other means. 
(8) Ensure that each family with a covered 
child who requests a placement receives one in the 
service area and, in making the placement, recognize 
and take into account the family’s needs regarding 
setting (such as a family child care home or center- 
based setting), cultural and linguistic preferences, 
operating schedule, and preferences on location. 
(9) Provide both center-based and family child 
care home options for child care and early learning 
services to families. 
(d) PROGRAM GOVERNANCE.— 
(1) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—Upon receiving des-
ignation as a prime sponsor, the prime sponsor shall 
establish a Child Care and Early Learning Advisory 
Council (referred to in this section as a ‘‘Council’’) 
and maintain the Council to advise the prime spon-
sor and assist in the coordination of program serv-
ices and implementation. 
(2) STATE
COUNCIL.—In the event that the 
prime sponsor is a State, the Council shall coordi-
nate activities with the State Advisory Council on 
Early Childhood Education and Care designated or 
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established under section 642B(b) in the Head Start 
Act (42 U.S.C. 9837b(b)). 
(3) OVERALL COMPOSITION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish the composition requirements for the 
Council ensuring that the Council has represen-
tation of— 
(i) parents or family members of chil-
dren served by child care and early learn-
ing programs; 
(ii) staff and providers of child care 
and early learning programs, or their rep-
resentatives; and 
(iii) other relevant stakeholders. 
(B) REPRESENTATION.—Members of the 
Council shall reflect the population served by 
the prime sponsor, with respect to income, cul-
ture, race and ethnicity, language, and status 
as a migrant or seasonal farmworker, Indian, or 
Native Hawaiian. 
(4) CHAIRPERSON.—Each Council shall select 
its own chairperson, from among the members of the 
Council. 
(5) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.— 
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(A) IN GENERAL.—Members of the Council 
shall— 
(i) not have a financial conflict of in-
terest with the prime sponsor; 
(ii) not receive compensation for serv-
ing on the Council or for providing services 
to the prime sponsor; 
(iii) not be employed, nor shall mem-
bers of their immediate family be em-
ployed, by a prime sponsor in the service 
area; and 
(iv) as a Council, operate as an entity 
independent of staff employed by the prime 
sponsor. 
(B) EXCEPTION.—If an individual holds a 
position as a result of public election or political 
appointment, and such position carries with it 
a concurrent appointment to serve as a member 
of a Council, and such individual has any con-
flict of interest described in clause (ii) or (iii) 
of subparagraph (A)— 
(i) such individual shall not be prohib-
ited from serving on such body and the 
Council shall report such conflict to the 
Secretary; and 
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(ii) if the position held as a result of 
public election or political appointment 
provides compensation, such individual 
shall not be prohibited from receiving such 
compensation. 
(6) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Council shall pro-
vide regular advice and guidance to the prime spon-
sor on the basic goals, policies, actions, and proce-
dures, at a basic level, for the prime sponsor relating 
to the child care and early learning program in-
volved, including policies with respect to planning, 
general supervision and oversight, overall coordina-
tion, personnel, budgeting, funding, and monitoring 
and evaluation, of the programs. 
(e) PROGRAM GOVERNANCE ADMINISTRATION.— 
(1) IMPASSE
POLICIES.—The Secretary shall 
develop policies, procedures, and guidance for prime 
sponsors concerning the resolution of internal dis-
putes, including any impasse in the governance of 
child care and early learning programs. 
(2) CONDUCT
OF
RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each 
prime sponsor shall ensure the sharing of accurate 
and regular information for use by the Council, 
about program planning, policies, and operations. 
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(3) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 
Appropriate training and technical assistance shall 
be provided to the members of the Council to ensure 
that the members understand the information the 
members receive and can effectively oversee and par-
ticipate in the child care and early learning program 
of the prime sponsor. 
(f) COLLABORATION AND COORDINATION.—On re-
ceiving designation as a prime sponsor, the prime sponsor 
shall ensure that the child care and early learning program 
is implemented in a way that promotes collaboration and 
coordination with public and private entities, to the max-
imum extent practicable, to improve the availability and 
quality of services to children and families, including im-
plementing each of the following activities: 
(1) Conduct outreach to schools in which chil-
dren participating in the child care and early learn-
ing program will enroll following the program, local 
educational agencies, the local business community, 
community-based organizations, faith-based organi-
zations, museums, health care providers, and librar-
ies to generate support and leverage the resources of 
the entire local community in order to improve 
school readiness. 
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(2) Coordinate activities and collaborate with 
entities (including providers) carrying out programs 
under the Child Care and Development Block Grant 
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et seq.), section 106 
of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 
(42 U.S.C. 5106a), parts B and E of title IV of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 670 et 
seq.), subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento 
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.), 
section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Dis-
abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et 
seq.), or the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et 
seq.), and other entities providing early childhood 
education and development programs or services. 
(3) Take steps to coordinate activities with the 
local educational agency serving the service area in-
volved and with schools in which children partici-
pating in the child care and early learning program 
will enroll following the program, including— 
(A) collaborating on the shared use of 
transportation and facilities, in appropriate 
cases; 
(B) collaborating to reduce the duplication 
and enhance the efficiency of services while in-
creasing the program participation; and 
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(C) exchanging information on the provi-
sion of noneducational services. 
(4) If there is a public preschool program in the 
service area that is not a prime sponsor nor a partic-
ipant in the child care and early learning program, 
enter into a memorandum of understanding with the 
local entity responsible for managing the preschool 
program, not later than 1 year after the date of en-
actment of this Act, that shall— 
(A)(i) provide for a review of each of the 
activities described in clause (ii); and 
(ii) include plans to coordinate, as appro-
priate, activities regarding— 
(I) educational activities, curricular 
objectives, and instruction; 
(II) public information dissemination 
and access to programs for families con-
tacting the child care and early learning 
program or the preschool program; 
(III) selection priorities for eligible 
children to be served by the child care and 
early learning program or any of the pre-
school programs; 
(IV) service areas; 
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(V) staff training, including opportu-
nities for joint staff training on topics such 
as academic content standards, instruc-
tional methods, curricula, and social and 
emotional development; 
(VI) program technical assistance; 
(VII) provision of additional services 
to meet the needs of parents or family 
members, as applicable; 
(VIII) communications and outreach 
to parents and family members for smooth 
transitions to kindergarten as required in 
paragraphs (3) and (6) of section 122(a); 
(IX) provision and use of facilities, 
transportation, and other program ele-
ments; and 
(X) other elements mutually agreed to 
by the parties to such memorandum; 
(B) be submitted to the Secretary and the 
State Director of Child Care and Early Learn-
ing Program Collaboration not later than 30 
days after the parties enter into such memo-
randum; and 
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(C) be revised periodically and renewed bi-
ennially by the parties to such memorandum, in 
alignment with the beginning of the school year. 
The requirements of the preceding sentence shall not 
apply where the local entity responsible for man-
aging the public preschool program is unable or un-
willing to enter into such a memorandum, and the 
prime sponsor shall inform the Secretary and the 
State Director of Child Care and Early Learning 
Program Collaboration of such inability or unwilling-
ness. 
(g) STANDARDS, CURRICULA, AND ASSESSMENT.— 
On receiving designation as a prime sponsor, the prime 
sponsor shall ensure that the child care and early learning 
program will— 
(1) take steps to ensure, to the maximum ex-
tent practicable, that children maintain the develop-
mental and educational gains achieved and build 
upon such gains in further schooling; 
(2) meet the national program standards set 
forth in section 121(a); 
(3) implement a research-based early childhood 
curriculum that— 
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(A) promotes young children’s school read-
iness 
in 
the 
areas 
listed 
in 
section 
121(a)(4)(A)(ii); 
(B) is based on scientifically valid research 
and has standardized training procedures and 
curriculum materials to support implementa-
tion; 
(C) is comprehensive and linked to an on-
going assessment and aligned with State early 
learning standards, within the meaning of sec-
tion 637 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 
9832), which is conducted not more than twice 
a year, with developmental and learning goals 
and measurable objectives; and 
(D) is focused on improving the learning 
environment, teaching practices, parent and 
family member involvement, and child outcomes 
across all areas of development; 
(4) implement effective interventions and sup-
port services that help promote the school readiness 
of children participating in the child care and early 
learning program involved; 
(5) use research-based assessment methods, in-
cluding such methods that provide proven results re-
gardless of culture, race or ethnicity, or language 
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spoken at home, in order to support the educational 
instruction and school readiness of children in the 
program; 
(6) use research-based developmental screening 
tools that have been demonstrated to be— 
(A) standardized, reliable, valid, and accu-
rate for the child being assessed, to the max-
imum extent practicable; and 
(B) age, developmentally, culturally, and 
linguistically appropriate, for the child and, if 
relevant, appropriate for children with disabil-
ities; 
(7) adopt, in consultation with experts in child 
care and early learning and with classroom teachers, 
a non-punitive evaluation to assess classroom teach-
ers and to inform professional development plans, as 
appropriate, that leads to improved teacher effective-
ness; 
(8) establish goals and measurable objectives 
for the provision of health, educational, nutritional, 
social services, and other services provided under 
this title and related to the program mission and to 
promoting school readiness; 
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(9) develop procedures for identifying and pro-
moting the language knowledge and skills of dual 
language learner children; and 
(10) not use funds to develop or implement an 
assessment for children that— 
(A) will be used as the sole basis for a 
child care and early learning provider being de-
termined to be ineligible to participate in the 
program carried out under this title; 
(B) will be used as the primary or sole 
basis for providing a reward or sanction for an 
individual provider; 
(C) will be used as the primary or sole 
basis for assessing program effectiveness; or 
(D) will be used to deny children eligibility 
to participate in the program carried out under 
this title. 
(h) EXCEPTIONS.—Nothing in this title shall pre-
clude a State from using a single assessment (as deter-
mined by the State) for children for— 
(1) supporting learning or improving a class-
room environment; 
(2) targeting professional development to a pro-
vider; 
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(3) determining the need for health, mental 
health, disability, developmental delay, or family 
support services; 
(4) obtaining information for the quality im-
provement process at the State level; or 
(5) conducting a program evaluation for the 
purposes of improving the program and providing in-
formation to parents. 
(i) FUNDED ENROLLMENT.—Each prime sponsor 
shall enroll 100 percent of its funded enrollment, with on-
going outreach to the community and activities to identify 
underserved populations. 
(j) SLIDING FEE SCALE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to child care 
and early learning services provided through the pro-
gram, a prime sponsor— 
(A) shall not charge a fee with respect to 
any low-income child; and 
(B) may charge a fee with respect to any 
child who is not a low-income child, in accord-
ance with the sliding fee scale described in 
paragraph (2) and subject to paragraph (3). 
(2) SLIDING FEE SCALE.—A fee under this sub-
section shall be charged based on a sliding fee scale 
as follows: 
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(A) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
200 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 250 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 1 percent 
of the family income. 
(B) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
250 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 300 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 2 percent 
of the family income. 
(C) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
300 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 350 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 3 percent 
of the family income. 
(D) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
350 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 400 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 4 percent 
of the family income. 
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(E) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
400 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 450 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 5 percent 
of the family income. 
(F) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
450 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 500 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 6 percent 
of the family income. 
(G) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
500 percent of the poverty line, the fee under 
this subsection shall not exceed 7 percent of the 
family income. 
(3) FEE
PERCENTAGE
APPLICABLE
REGARD-
LESS OF NUMBER OF CHILDREN SERVED.—The total 
fee for a family that is subject to the fee under this 
subsection and has more than 1 child served through 
the program— 
(A) may increase as the family enters the 
second or a further child in the program; but 
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(B) may not be greater than the fee al-
lowed under paragraph (2). 
(k) PARENT BOARDS.—The prime sponsor shall re-
quire the establishment, at each child care and early learn-
ing center, of a board of parents, to be composed of par-
ents and family members of children attending the center. 
The board shall meet periodically with staff of the center 
for the purpose of discussing problems and concerns. 
(l) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this title 
shall be construed to alter or otherwise affect the rights, 
remedies, and procedures afforded to staff of child care 
and early learning programs or delegate providers, or em-
ployees of public schools, or local educational agencies, 
under Federal, State, tribal, or local laws (including appli-
cable regulations or court orders) or under the terms of 
collective bargaining agreements, memoranda of under-
standing, or other agreements between such staff or em-
ployees, and the corresponding program, provider, school, 
or agency. 
SEC. 115. DELEGATE PROVIDERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—A prime sponsor may use finan-
cial assistance made available under section 112(a)(1) to 
enter into an agreement with a delegate provider to carry 
out services as part of the child care and early learning 
program. 
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(b) APPLICATION.—To be able to receive financial as-
sistance under subsection (a) for a fiscal year as a delegate 
provider to carry out services as part of the child care and 
early learning program, a public or private agency or orga-
nization shall submit a delegate provider application to a 
prime sponsor, at such time and in such manner as the 
prime sponsor may require, that provides— 
(1) that the delegate provider applicant is an 
entity that is a locality, local educational agency, 
faith-based organization, public or private nonprofit 
or for-profit agency or organization, family child 
care network or association, employer or business or-
ganization, labor union, employee or labor-manage-
ment organization, home-based child care provider, 
or public or private educational agency or institu-
tion; and 
(2) that the entity will provide for such fiscal 
control and fund accounting procedures as the Sec-
retary shall prescribe to assure proper disbursement 
of and accounting for Federal funds. 
(c) APPROVAL.—A delegate provider application may 
be approved by a prime sponsor upon its determination 
that such application meets the requirements of this sec-
tion and that the services to be provided will otherwise 
further the objectives and satisfy the appropriate provi-
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sions of the prime sponsor’s child care and early learning 
plan as approved pursuant to section 114. On approval 
of the application, the entity shall be considered to be a 
delegate provider, for purposes of this title. 
(d) FAMILY
AND
COMMUNITY
INVOLVEMENT.— 
Prime sponsors shall involve parents, family members, and 
community members in the selection process of delegate 
providers. 
Subtitle B—Standards 
SEC. 121. NATIONAL PROGRAM STANDARDS, MONITORING 
OF CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PRO-
GRAMS. 
(a) STANDARDS
FOR CHILD CARE
AND EARLY 
LEARNING SERVICES.— 
(1) ISSUANCE.— 
(A) NATIONAL
PROGRAM
STANDARDS.— 
Within 18 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall, after consulta-
tion with other Federal agencies, and on the 
basis of the recommendations of the Committee 
established pursuant to paragraph (3), issue a 
common set of national program standards 
which shall be applicable to all prime sponsors, 
with respect to their child care and early learn-
ing programs providing child care and early 
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learning services with financial assistance under 
this title, to be known as the ‘‘Federal Stand-
ards for Child Care and Early Learning Serv-
ices’’. 
(B) BASELINE FOR KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, 
AND COMPETENCIES.—The standards shall es-
tablish a baseline threshold for knowledge, 
skills, and competencies for child care and early 
learning teachers and staff that— 
(i) shall be aligned with compensation 
levels; 
(ii) shall be phased in; and 
(iii) shall be determined by the Sec-
retary to be in alignment with the knowl-
edge, skills, and competency expectations 
of the child care and early learning, or 
early childhood education, profession. 
(2) 
COMPREHENSIVENESS.—As 
appropriate 
and practicable, the Secretary shall make efforts to 
ensure that the Federal Standards for Child Care 
and Early Learning Services are as comprehensive 
as the Head Start program performance standards 
in section 641A(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 
9836a(a)), and the performance standards for pro-
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viders and programs issued under the military child 
care program. 
(3) SPECIAL COMMITTEE.— 
(A) APPOINTMENT.—The Secretary shall, 
within 60 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, appoint a Special Committee on Fed-
eral Standards for Child Care and Early Learn-
ing Services. 
(B) COMPOSITION.—The Committee shall 
include— 
(i) parents or legal guardians of chil-
dren participating in child care and early 
learning programs; 
(ii) representatives of prime sponsors 
carrying out child care and early learning 
programs; 
(iii) representatives of staff of child 
care and early learning programs, includ-
ing teachers; 
(iv) representatives of tribes and trib-
al organizations carrying out child care 
and early learning programs on Indian 
land; 
(v) representatives of family child care 
home providers, staff and employers for 
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center-based child care and early learning 
programs, and family child care home pro-
viders in child care and early learning pro-
grams; and 
(vi) specialists covering the areas of 
child care and early learning quality, work-
force preparation, working conditions, and 
wages, and early childhood development. 
(C) DIVERSITY.—The Secretary shall en-
sure that the membership of the Committee is 
diverse with regard to culture, race and eth-
nicity, and language. 
(D) DUTIES.—Such Committee shall rec-
ommend Federal Standards for Child Care and 
Early Learning Services and modifications of 
such standards as provided in paragraph (1). 
(4) CONTENT OF STANDARDS.—The standards 
shall include— 
(A) performance standards with respect to 
services required to be provided, including 
health, nutritional, and social services, and 
other services, including parental and family 
member involvement services and transition ac-
tivities described in section 122; 
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(B) 
scientifically 
based 
and 
develop-
mentally appropriate early development and 
learning performance standards related to 
school readiness to ensure that the children 
participating in the child care and early learn-
ing program, at a minimum, develop and dem-
onstrate— 
(i) language knowledge and skills, in-
cluding oral language and listening com-
prehension; 
(ii) literacy knowledge and skills, in-
cluding 
phonological 
awareness, 
print 
awareness and skills, and alphabetic knowl-
edge; 
(iii) 
mathematics 
knowledge 
and 
skills; 
(iv) science knowledge and skills; 
(v) cognitive abilities that support 
academic achievement and child care and 
early learning; 
(vi) approaches to learning related to 
child care and early learning; 
(vii) social and emotional development 
sufficient to be a foundation for early 
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learning, school success, and social prob-
lem-solving; 
(viii) creative arts expression; 
(ix) physical development; and 
(x) in the case of dual language learn-
er children, progress toward language 
knowledge 
and 
development, 
including 
progress made through the use of cul-
turally and linguistically appropriate in-
structional services; 
(C) administrative and financial manage-
ment standards; 
(D) standards relating to the condition and 
location of facilities (including indoor air qual-
ity assessment standards, where appropriate) 
for such prime sponsors, including regulations 
that require that the facilities used for child 
care and early learning programs for regularly 
scheduled center-based and combination pro-
gram option classroom activities— 
(i) shall meet or exceed State and 
local requirements concerning licensing for 
such facilities; and 
(ii) shall be accessible by State and 
local authorities for purposes of monitoring 
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and ensuring compliance, unless State or 
local laws prohibit such access; 
(E) standards related to the work environ-
ment, including standards for the health and 
safety, and well-being, of teachers and other 
staff in the child care and early learning pro-
grams; and 
(F) such other standards as the Secretary 
finds to be appropriate. 
(5) 
CONSIDERATIONS
REGARDING
STAND-
ARDS.—In developing standards required under 
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 
(A) consult with experts in the fields of 
child care and early learning, early childhood 
education, child health care, family services (in-
cluding linguistically and culturally appropriate 
services to dual language learner children and 
their families), administration, and financial 
management, and with persons with experience 
in the operation of child care and early learning 
programs; 
(B) take into consideration— 
(i) past experience with use of the 
standards in effect under the Head Start 
Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) on the date 
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of enactment of the Improving Head Start 
for School Readiness Act of 2007; 
(ii) developments concerning research- 
based practices with respect to early child-
hood education and development, children 
with disabilities, homeless children, chil-
dren in foster care, and family services, 
and best practices with respect to program 
administration and financial management; 
(iii) appropriateness of standards for 
prime sponsors with respect to their pro-
grams, recognizing differences in types of 
settings (including center-based and home- 
based settings), geography of the service 
area, and the culture, language, and age 
distribution of the children served; 
(iv) projected needs of expanding child 
care and early learning programs; 
(v) guidelines and standards that pro-
mote child health and physical develop-
ment, including participation in outdoor 
activity that supports children’s motor de-
velopment and overall health and nutrition; 
(vi) changes in the characteristics of 
the population of children who are access-
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ing child care and early learning programs, 
including country of origin, language back-
ground, and family structure of such chil-
dren, and changes in the population and 
number of such children who are in foster 
care or are homeless children; 
(vii) mechanisms to ensure that chil-
dren participating in child care and early 
learning programs make a successful tran-
sition to the schools that the children will 
be attending; 
(viii) the need for prime sponsors to 
maintain regular communications with par-
ents and family members, including con-
ducting periodic meetings to discuss the 
progress of individual children in child care 
and early learning programs; 
(ix) the unique challenges faced by in-
dividual programs, including those pro-
grams that are seasonal or short-term and 
those programs that serve rural popu-
lations; 
(x) the degree to which standards are 
streamlined and minimize administrative 
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pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
burdens on child care and early learning 
program providers; 
(xi) the depth of demonstrated skills, 
experiences, and linguistic, cultural, and 
racial and ethnic, diversity of providers for 
child care and early learning programs; 
and 
(xii) the input of parents and family 
members; 
(C)(i) review and revise as necessary the 
standards in effect under this subsection; and 
(ii) ensure that any such revisions in the 
standards will not result in the elimination of or 
any reduction in quality, scope, or types of 
health, educational, nutritional, social, or other 
services, including parental and family member 
involvement services, required to be provided 
under such standards as in effect on the date 
of enactment of this Act; and 
(D) consult with appropriate officials from 
Indian tribes and tribal organizations, experts 
in Indian or Native Hawaiian early childhood 
education and development, linguists, and asso-
ciations related to child care and early learning 
programs providing services for children belong-
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pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
ing to Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian chil-
dren, on the review and promulgation of stand-
ards under paragraph (1) (including standards 
for Indian or Native Hawaiian, as the case may 
be, language acquisition and school readiness). 
(6) ADEQUATE TIME TO MEET STANDARDS.— 
The Secretary shall establish an effective date for 
the standards that allows adequate time for prime 
sponsors to meet the standards after they have been 
issued. 
(b) UNIFORM CODE FOR FACILITIES.— 
(1) 
ESTABLISHMENT
OF
SPECIAL
COM-
MITTEE.—The Secretary shall, within 60 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, appoint a special 
committee to develop and recommend a uniform 
code for facilities, to be used as described in para-
graph (4). The standards in the code shall deal prin-
cipally with those aspects of facilities that are essen-
tial to the health, safety, and physical comfort of the 
children involved and the aspects of facilities that 
are related to the Federal Standards for Child Care 
and Early Learning Services under subsection 
(a)(1). In recommending the provisions of the code, 
the Secretary shall take into consideration the dif-
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ferences between child care centers and family child 
care homes. 
(2) COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE.—The special 
committee appointed under this subsection shall in-
clude parents or family members of children partici-
pating in child care and early learning programs and 
representatives of State and local facility licensing 
agencies, of public health officials, of fire prevention 
officials, of the construction industry and labor 
unions, of prime sponsors, of center-based providers 
and family child care home providers, and of na-
tional agencies or organizations interested in the de-
velopment of children. Not less than one-half of the 
membership of the committee shall consist of par-
ents or family members of children participating in 
child care and early learning programs conducted 
under this title. 
(3) PROPOSED CODE.—Within 1 year after its 
appointment, the special committee— 
(A) shall develop standards for a proposed 
uniform code for facilities in which child care 
and early learning services are provided; and 
(B) shall hold public hearings on the pro-
posed code prior to submitting its final rec-
ommendation to the Secretary for approval. 
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(4) PROMULGATION.—After considering the 
recommendations submitted by the special com-
mittee in accordance with paragraph (3), the Sec-
retary shall promulgate standards for a uniform 
code described in paragraph (3)(A), which shall be 
applicable to all facilities receiving Federal financial 
assistance under this title. If the Secretary dis-
approves the committee’s recommendations, the Sec-
retary shall state the reasons for the disapproval. 
The Secretary shall also distribute such standards 
and urge their adoption by States and local govern-
ments for facilities in which child care and early 
learning services are provided. The Secretary may 
from time to time modify the uniform code for facili-
ties in accordance with procedures set forth in this 
subsection. 
(5) ADEQUATE
TIME
TO
MEET
FACILITIES 
CODE.—The Secretary shall establish an effective 
date for the code that allows adequate time for 
prime sponsors to meet the code after it has been 
promulgated. 
(6) STATE CODE FOR FACILITIES.—Paragraphs 
(1) through (5) shall not apply in a State for which 
the Secretary, after consultation with the special 
committee referred to in paragraph (2), makes a de-
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termination that the State’s uniform code for facili-
ties or a similar facilities code or set of standards 
that applies to centers and family child care homes 
that participate in a child care and early learning 
program under this title, is sufficient to meet the 
health, safety, and physical comfort goals of this 
subsection. 
(c) MEASURES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with representatives of child care and early 
learning programs, Indian tribes and tribal organiza-
tions, parents and family members of children in 
such programs, and teachers and other staff in such 
programs, and with experts in the fields of early 
childhood education and development, family serv-
ices, and program management, shall use the study 
on Developmental Outcomes and Assessments for 
Young Children by the National Academy of 
Sciences, consistent with section 649(j) of the Head 
Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844(j)), and other relevant 
research to establish, inform, revise, and provide 
guidance to prime sponsors for utilizing, scientif-
ically based measures that support, as appropriate— 
(A) classroom instructional practices and, 
for infants and toddlers, responsive caregiving 
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pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
practices that support early learning and devel-
opment; 
(B) identification of children with special 
needs; 
(C) program evaluation; and 
(D) administrative and financial manage-
ment practices. 
(2) CHARACTERISTICS
OF
MEASURES.—The 
measures under this subsection shall— 
(A) be developmentally, linguistically, and 
culturally appropriate for the population served; 
(B) be reviewed periodically, based on ad-
vances in the science of early childhood develop-
ment; 
(C) be consistent with relevant, nationally 
recognized professional and technical standards 
related to the assessment of young children; 
(D) be valid and reliable in the language in 
which the measures are administered; 
(E) be administered by staff with appro-
priate training for such administration; 
(F) provide for appropriate accommoda-
tions for children with disabilities and dual lan-
guage learner children; 
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pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
(G) be high-quality research-based meas-
ures that have been demonstrated to assist with 
the purposes for which the measures were de-
vised; and 
(H) be adaptable, as appropriate, for use 
in the self-assessment of prime sponsors, in-
cluding in the evaluation of administrative and 
financial management practices. 
(3) USE
OF
MEASURES; 
LIMITATIONS
ON 
USE.— 
(A) USE.—The measures shall be de-
signed, as appropriate, for the purpose of— 
(i) helping to develop the skills, 
knowledge, abilities, and development de-
scribed in subsection (a)(4)(A)(ii) of chil-
dren participating in child care and early 
learning programs, with an emphasis on 
measuring skills that scientifically valid re-
search has demonstrated are related to 
children’s school readiness and later suc-
cess in school; 
(ii) improving classroom practices, in-
cluding reviewing children’s strengths and 
weaknesses and individualizing instruction 
to better meet the needs of the children in-
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pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
volved and, for infants and toddlers, ensur-
ing the opportunity for one-on-one inter-
action that facilitates early learning and 
development; 
(iii) identifying the special needs of 
children; and 
(iv) improving overall program per-
formance in order to help prime sponsors 
identify problem areas that may require 
additional training and technical assistance 
resources. 
(B) LIMITATIONS.—Such measures shall 
not be used for an assessment for children 
that— 
(i) will be used as the sole basis for a 
child care and early learning provider 
being determined to be ineligible to partici-
pate in the program carried out under this 
title; 
(ii) will be used as the primary or sole 
basis for providing a reward or sanction 
for an individual provider; 
(iii) will be used as the primary or 
sole basis for assessing program effective-
ness; or 
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