I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1438 
To establish demonstration projects to provide at-home infant care benefits. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 9, 2007 
Ms. DELAURO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To establish demonstration projects to provide at-home infant 
care benefits. 
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 ‘‘Choices in Child Care 
Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Currently, child care assistance for children 
from low-income working families is severely under-
funded, allowing only 1 in 7 eligible children to re-
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ceive child care assistance for children from birth to 
age 13. 
(2) Funding for the Child Care and Develop-
ment Block Grant Act of 1990 has remained rel-
atively flat for 5 years, making it more difficult for 
children from eligible families to receive child care 
assistance. 
(3) In the majority of United States families, 
parents, whether married or single, must work to 
provide economic security for their families and, not 
the least, for the infants newly welcomed into the 
families. Fifty-five percent of women with children 
less than 1 year of age are part of the workforce, 
while 73 percent of women with children 1 year of 
age or older are in the workforce. 
(4) Research shows that the quality and nature 
of caretaking in the first months and years of life 
are critical to a young child’s subsequent brain de-
velopment, social development, and well-being. 
Healthy early development depends on nurturing 
and responsible relationships. 
(5) Research also shows that there is an ex-
treme shortage of quality, affordable child care for 
infants. Numerous studies document lack of infant 
care and, in particular, affordable care that meets 
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basic health and safety standards, particularly in 
rural areas. The current number of infant slots of 
licensed child care providers can only meet 18 per-
cent of the potential need. The shortage is even 
more acute in rural areas, especially those with a 
high percentage of low-wage residents. 
(6) For the well-being of United States chil-
dren, and for the economic security of the families 
on which the children depend, working parents 
should be able to provide child care for infants them-
selves without undermining family economic sta-
bility. 
SEC. 3. AT-HOME INFANT CARE. 
The Child Care and Development Block Grant Act 
of 1990 is amended by inserting after section 658G (42 
U.S.C. 9858e) the following: 
‘‘SEC. 658H. DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS TO PROVIDE AT- 
HOME INFANT CARE BENEFITS. 
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO AWARD GRANTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 
grants to not less than 5 and not more than 7 
States to enable such States to carry out demonstra-
tion projects to provide at-home infant care benefits 
to eligible low-income families. 
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‘‘(2) INDIAN
TRIBES.—The Secretary may 
award grants to Indian tribes under this subsection. 
An Indian tribe that receives a grant under this sub-
section shall carry out a demonstration project to 
provide at-home infant care benefits to eligible low- 
income families. The Indian tribe shall carry out the 
demonstration project in the same manner, and to 
the same extent, as a State that receives a grant 
under this subsection, except that the Secretary may 
modify the requirements of this section as appro-
priate with respect to the Indian tribe. 
‘‘(3) CALCULATION.—Any grant awarded to an 
Indian tribe under paragraph (2) shall not be count-
ed in determining the number of grants awarded to 
States under paragraph (1). 
‘‘(b) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.— 
‘‘(1) APPLICATION FOR PARTICIPATION AND SE-
LECTION OF STATES.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to par-
ticipate in the program carried out under this 
section and receive a grant under subsection (a) 
to carry out a demonstration project, a State 
shall submit an application to the Secretary at 
such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Secretary may require. 
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‘‘(B) NOTICE.—Not later than 90 days 
after the date of enactment of Choices in Child 
Care Act, the Secretary shall publish in the 
Federal Register a notice of opportunity to par-
ticipate in the program and receive such a 
grant, specifying the contents of an application 
described in subparagraph (A). The notice shall 
include a timeframe for States to submit such 
an application, and shall provide that all such 
applications shall be submitted not later than 
270 days after such date of enactment. 
‘‘(C) SELECTION.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary 
shall review the applications and select the 
participating States not later than 1 year 
after such date of enactment. 
‘‘(ii) CRITERIA.—In selecting the par-
ticipating States, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(I) seek to ensure geographic di-
versity; and 
‘‘(II) give priority to States— 
‘‘(aa) 
whose 
applications 
demonstrate a strong commit-
ment to improving the quality of 
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infant care and the choices avail-
able to parents of infants; 
‘‘(bb) with experience rel-
evant to the operation of at-home 
infant care programs; and 
‘‘(cc) in which there are de-
monstrable shortages of infant 
care. 
‘‘(2) REQUIRED CERTIFICATIONS.—A State se-
lected to be a participating State shall provide cer-
tifications to the Secretary, with respect to the dem-
onstration project to be carried out by the State, 
that— 
‘‘(A) during the period during which the 
State carries out the demonstration project, the 
State will not reduce expenditures for child care 
services below the level of such expenditures 
made by the State in the fiscal year preceding 
the fiscal year in which the State began to 
carry out the project; 
‘‘(B) the State, in carrying out the dem-
onstration project— 
‘‘(i) will not give priority or preference 
to— 
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‘‘(I) eligible low-income families 
seeking to receive at-home infant care 
benefits through the demonstration 
project; over 
‘‘(II) other eligible low-income 
families on a waiting list for child 
care assistance through another pro-
gram in the State; but 
‘‘(ii) will select a combination of fami-
lies described in clause (i)(I) and families 
described in (i)(II) to receive at-home in-
fant care benefits; 
‘‘(C) the State will— 
‘‘(i) provide parents applying to re-
ceive at-home infant care benefits with in- 
formation on the range of options for child 
care available to the parents; 
‘‘(ii) ensure that approved applicants 
for at-home infant care benefits are per-
mitted to choose between receipt of at- 
home infant care benefit subsidies, and re-
ceipt of certificates that may be used with 
an eligible child care provider for child care 
needed for employment; and 
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‘‘(iii) provide that a family receiving 
at-home infant care benefit subsidies may 
exchange the subsidies for certificates de-
scribed in clause (ii) at any time during 
the family’s participation in the dem-
onstration project; 
‘‘(D) the State will develop or update, and 
implement, a plan to improve the quality of in-
fant care in the State, and provide parent edu-
cation and support services to participants in 
the demonstration project; and 
‘‘(E) the State will cooperate with informa-
tion collection and evaluations conducted by the 
Secretary. 
‘‘(3) FAMILY ELIGIBILITY.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to re-
ceive at-home infant care benefits through a 
demonstration project under this section, a 
family shall— 
‘‘(i) have a family income that does 
not exceed the limit specified in section 
658P(4)(B); 
‘‘(ii) include a child under the age of 
12 months (or, at the election of the State 
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carrying out the demonstration project, 
under the age of 24 months); 
‘‘(iii) include a parent who had a re-
cent work history (as determined in ac-
cordance with the State’s requirements for 
such a work history) prior to application 
for the at-home infant care benefits; and 
‘‘(iv) meet such other eligibility re-
quirements as the State may establish. 
‘‘(B) TWO-PARENT FAMILIES.—A State se-
lected to carry out a demonstration project 
under this section shall permit 2-parent families 
to participate in the project but may not limit 
participation in the project to such families. 
‘‘(4) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—The amount of 
an at-home infant care benefit provided to an eligi-
ble low-income family under this section for a month 
shall not exceed the monthly amount obtained by ap-
plying 100 percent of the State’s maximum rate for 
a licensed family child care provider for full-time in-
fant care. 
‘‘(5) TANF ASSISTANCE.—The receipt of an at- 
home infant care benefit under this section shall not 
be considered to be assistance for any purpose under 
the program of block grants to States for temporary 
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assistance for needy families established under part 
A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
601 et seq.). 
‘‘(6) BENEFIT
NOT
TREATED
AS
INCOME.— 
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
value of an at-home infant care benefit shall not be 
treated as income for purposes of any Federal or 
federally-assisted program that bases eligibility, or 
the amount of benefits or services provided, on need. 
‘‘(c) EVALUATION AND REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall con-
duct an evaluation of the demonstration projects 
carried out under this section and submit a report 
to Congress containing the results of such evaluation 
not later than 4 years after the date of enactment 
of Choices in Child Care Act. 
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In conducting the eval-
uation, the Secretary shall examine the following: 
‘‘(A) Implementation experiences of the 
States carrying out the demonstration projects 
in developing and operating projects providing 
at-home infant care benefits, including design 
issues and issues in coordinating at-home infant 
care benefits provided under this section with 
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benefits provided or funded under another pro-
vision of this Act in the State. 
‘‘(B) The characteristics of families seek-
ing to participate and participating in the dem-
onstration projects providing at-home infant 
care benefits funded under this section. 
‘‘(C) The length of participation by fami-
lies in such demonstration projects and the rea-
sons for the families ceasing to participate in 
the demonstration projects. 
‘‘(D) The prior and subsequent employ-
ment of the participating families and the effect 
of the demonstration project participation on 
subsequent employment of the families. 
‘‘(E) The costs and benefits of the dem-
onstration projects. 
‘‘(F) The effectiveness of State efforts (in-
cluding tribal efforts) to improve the quality of 
infant care during the periods in which the 
demonstration projects are carried out. 
‘‘(3) RESERVATION
OF
FUNDS.—From the 
amount appropriated under section 658B(b) for a 
fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve $1,000,000 
for purposes of conducting the evaluation required 
under this subsection.’’. 
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SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS AND CON-
FORMING AMENDMENTS. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 
658B of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act 
of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858) is amended— 
(1) by inserting: ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 
‘‘There is’’; 
(2) by inserting ‘‘(other than section 658H)’’ 
after ‘‘this subchapter’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(b) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS TO PROVIDE AT- 
HOME INFANT CARE BENEFITS.—There is authorized to 
be appropriated to carry out section 658H $75,000,000 
for fiscal year 2008 and each subsequent fiscal year.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) RESERVATIONS.—Section 658O(a) of the 
Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 
1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858m(a)) is amended— 
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘under 
this subchapter’’ and inserting ‘‘under section 
658B(a)’’; and 
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘under 
section 658B’’ and inserting ‘‘under section 
658B(a)’’. 
(2) ALLOTMENTS.—Section 658O(b)(1) of such 
Act (42 U.S.C. 9858m(b)(1)) is amended by striking 
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‘‘under section 658B’’ and inserting ‘‘under section 
658B(a)’’. 
Æ 
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