(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 
(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-
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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— 
(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; 
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(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 
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; 
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(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; 
(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— 
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(1) supporting learning or improving a class-
room environment; 
(2) targeting professional development to a pro-
vider; 
(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 
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paragraph (2) and subject to paragraphs (3) 
and (4). 
(2) SLIDING FEE SCALE.—A fee under this sub-
section shall be charged, in a State, based on a slid-
ing fee scale as follows: 
(A) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
75 percent of the State median income but not 
more than 87.5 percent of the State median in-
come, the fee under this subsection shall not ex-
ceed 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 
87.5 percent of the State median income but 
not more than 100 percent of the State median 
income, 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 
100 percent of the State median income but not 
more than 112.5 percent of the State median 
income, 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 
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112.5 percent of the State median income but 
not more than 125 percent of the State median 
income, the fee under this subsection shall not 
exceed 4 percent of the family income. 
(E) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
125 percent of the State median income but not 
more than 137.5 percent of the State median 
income, 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 
137.5 percent of the State median income but 
not more than 150 percent of the State median 
income, 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 
150 percent of the State median income, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 7 percent 
of the family income. 
(3) LIMITATION.—With respect to a child who 
is in a family with a family income described in ei-
ther of subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (2), 
the fee charged per day under this subsection shall 
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not exceed 2 percent of the family income, divided 
by 52, and then divided by 5, irrespective of the 
number of days of care provided per week. 
(4) 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 
(B) may not be greater than the fee al-
lowed under paragraphs (2) and (3). 
(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 ap-
plicable regulations or court orders) or under the terms 
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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. 
(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, 
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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 ensure 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-
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.— 
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(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 
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-
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(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; 
(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, as devel-
opmentally appropriate, and demonstrate— 
(i) language knowledge and skills, in-
cluding oral language and listening com-
prehension; 
(ii) literacy knowledge and skills, in-
cluding 
phonological 
awareness, 
print 
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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 
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; 
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(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 
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— 
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(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 
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 
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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-
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; 
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(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 
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 
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(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-
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.— 
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(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-
ferences between 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-
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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. 
(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 
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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-
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 organi-
zations, parents and family members of children in 
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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 
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; 
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(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; 
(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— 
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(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-
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. 
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(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 
(iv) will be used to deny children eligi-
bility to participate in the program carried 
out under this title. 
(C) EXCEPTIONS.—Nothing in this sub-
chapter shall preclude a State from using a sin-
gle assessment (as determined by the State) for 
children for— 
(i) supporting learning or improving a 
classroom environment; 
(ii) targeting professional development 
to a provider; 
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(iii) determining the need for health, 
mental health, disability, developmental 
delay, or family support services; 
(iv) obtaining information for the 
quality improvement process at the State 
level; or 
(v) conducting a program evaluation 
for the purposes of improving the program 
and providing information to parents. 
(4) CONFIDENTIALITY.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, through 
regulation, shall ensure the confidentiality of 
any personally identifiable data, information, 
and records collected or maintained under this 
title by the Secretary and any prime sponsors. 
Such regulations shall provide the policies, pro-
tections, and rights equivalent to those provided 
to a parent, student, and educational agency or 
institution, as the case may be, under section 
444 of the General Education Provisions Act 
(20 U.S.C. 1232g). 
(B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION ON NATION-
WIDE DATABASE.—Nothing in this subsection 
shall be construed to authorize the development 
of a nationwide database of personally identifi-
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able data, information, or records on children 
resulting from the use of measures under this 
subsection. 
(5) SPECIAL RULE.— 
(A) PROHIBITION.—The use of assessment 
items and data on any assessment authorized 
under this title by any agent of the Federal 
Government is prohibited for the purposes of— 
(i) ranking, comparing, or otherwise 
evaluating individual children for purposes 
other than research, training, or technical 
assistance; and 
(ii) providing rewards or sanctions for 
individual children or teachers. 
(B) RESULTS.—The Secretary shall not 
use the results of a single such assessment as 
the sole method for assessing program effective-
ness or making agency funding determinations 
at the national, regional, or local level under 
this title. 
(d) MONITORING OF LOCAL PRIME SPONSORS AND 
CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PROGRAMS.—The 
Secretary, in consultation with representatives of child 
care and early learning programs, Indian Tribes and Trib-
al organizations, parents and family members of children 
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in such programs, teachers and other staff in such pro-
grams, and with experts in the fields of early childhood 
education and development, family services, and program 
management, shall establish and implement monitoring 
procedures for prime sponsors and their child care and 
early learning programs (which may be based on the Head 
Start program monitoring procedures described in section 
641A(c) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a(c)), and 
the monitoring procedures being implemented for the mili-
tary child care program)— 
(1) to determine whether prime sponsors meet 
standards described in subsection (a)(1) established 
under this title with respect to program, administra-
tive, financial management, and other requirements; 
and 
(2) in order to help the prime sponsors identify 
areas for improvement and areas of strength as part 
of their ongoing self-assessment process. 
(e) CORRECTIVE ACTION FOR PRIME SPONSORS.— 
(1) DETERMINATION.—If the Secretary deter-
mines, on the basis of a review pursuant to sub-
section (d), that a prime sponsor designated pursu-
ant to this title fails to meet the standards described 
in subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall— 
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(A) inform the prime sponsor of the defi-
ciencies that shall be corrected and identify the 
assistance to be provided consistent with para-
graph (3); 
(B) with respect to each identified defi-
ciency, require the prime sponsor— 
(i) to correct the deficiency imme-
diately, if the Secretary finds that the defi-
ciency threatens the health or safety of 
staff or program participants or poses a 
threat to the integrity of Federal funds; 
(ii) to correct the deficiency not later 
than 90 days after the identification of the 
deficiency if the Secretary finds, in the dis-
cretion of the Secretary, that such a 90- 
day period is reasonable, in light of the na-
ture and magnitude of the deficiency; or 
(iii) in the discretion of the Secretary 
(taking into consideration the seriousness 
of the deficiency and the time reasonably 
required to correct the deficiency), to com-
ply with the requirements of paragraph (2) 
concerning a quality improvement plan; 
and 
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(C) initiate proceedings to terminate the 
designation of the prime sponsor unless the 
prime sponsor corrects the deficiency. 
(2) QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN.— 
(A) PRIME
SPONSOR
AND
PROGRAM
RE-
SPONSIBILITIES.—To retain a designation as a 
prime sponsor under this title, a prime sponsor 
that is the subject of a determination described 
in paragraph (1) (excluding a prime sponsor re-
quired to correct a deficiency immediately or 
during a 90-day period under clause (i) or (ii) 
of paragraph (1)(B)) shall— 
(i) develop in a timely manner, a qual-
ity improvement plan that shall be subject 
to the approval of the Secretary, and that 
shall specify— 
(I) the deficiencies to be cor-
rected; 
(II) the actions to be taken to 
correct such deficiencies; and 
(III) the timetable for accom-
plishment of the corrective actions 
specified; and 
(ii) correct each deficiency identified, 
not later than the date for correction of 
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such deficiency specified in such plan 
(which shall not be later than 1 year after 
the date the prime sponsor that is deter-
mined to have a deficiency received notice 
of the determination and of the specific de-
ficiency to be corrected). 
(B) SECRETARIAL
RESPONSIBILITY.—Not 
later than 30 days after receiving from a prime 
sponsor a proposed quality improvement plan 
pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Secretary 
shall either approve such proposed plan or 
specify the reasons why the proposed plan can-
not be approved. 
(3) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 
The Secretary shall provide training and technical 
assistance to the prime sponsor with respect to the 
development or implementation of such quality im-
provement plans to the extent the Secretary finds 
such provision to be feasible and appropriate given 
available funding and other statutory responsibil-
ities. 
(f) SUMMARIES OF MONITORING OUTCOMES.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 
after the end of each fiscal year, the Secretary shall 
publish a summary report on the findings of reviews 
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conducted under subsection (d) and on the outcomes 
of quality improvement plans implemented under 
subsection (e), during such fiscal year. 
(2) REPORT AVAILABILITY.—Such report shall 
be made widely available to— 
(A) parents and family members with chil-
dren receiving assistance under this title— 
(i) in an understandable and uniform 
format; and 
(ii) to the extent practicable, in a lan-
guage that the parents and family mem-
bers understand; 
(B) the public through means such as— 
(i) distribution through public agen-
cies; and 
(ii) posting such information on the 
internet; and 
(C) Indian Tribes and Tribal organiza-
tions. 
(3) REPORT INFORMATION.—Such report shall 
contain detailed data— 
(A) on compliance with specific standards 
and measures; and 
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(B) sufficient to allow prime sponsors to 
use such data to improve the quality of their 
programs. 
(g) SELF-ASSESSMENT.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not less frequently than 
once each program year, with the consultation and 
participation of the Child Care and Early Learning 
Council and, as appropriate, other interested persons 
in the service area, each prime sponsor that receives 
financial assistance under this title shall conduct a 
comprehensive self-assessment of its effectiveness 
and progress in meeting program goals and objec-
tives and in implementing and complying with stand-
ards described in subsection (a)(1). 
(2) ONGOING MONITORING.—Each prime spon-
sor shall establish and implement procedures for the 
ongoing monitoring of its child care and early learn-
ing program, to ensure that the operations of the 
program work toward meeting program goals and 
objectives and implementing and complying with 
standards described in subsection (a)(1). 
(h) ACCREDITATION.—The Secretary shall require 
that each child care and early learning center meet, not 
later than 6 years after receiving financial assistance 
under this title, standards of operation necessary for ac-
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creditation by an appropriate national early childhood pro-
grams accreditation body that was in existence on the date 
of enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 122. PRIME SPONSOR ALIGNMENT WITH K–12 EDU-
CATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Each prime sponsor shall take 
steps to coordinate with the local educational agency serv-
ing the service area and with schools in which children 
participating in a child care and early learning program 
will enroll following such program to promote continuity 
of services and effective transitions, including— 
(1) developing and implementing a systematic 
procedure for transferring, with parental consent, 
child care and early learning program records for 
each participating child to the school in which such 
child will enroll; 
(2) establishing ongoing channels of commu-
nication between child care and early learning pro-
gram staff and their counterparts in the schools (in-
cluding teachers, social workers, local educational 
agency 
liaisons 
designated 
under 
section 
722(g)(1)(J)(ii) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11432(g)(1)(J)(ii)), and 
health staff) to facilitate coordination of programs; 
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(3) establishing ongoing communications be-
tween the prime sponsor and local educational agen-
cy for developing continuity of developmentally ap-
propriate curricular objectives and for shared expec-
tations for children’s learning and development as 
the children transition to school; 
(4) organizing and participating in joint train-
ing, including transition-related training for school 
staff and child care and early learning program 
staff; 
(5) establishing comprehensive transition poli-
cies 
and 
procedures 
that 
support 
children 
transitioning to school, including by engaging the 
local educational agency in the establishment of such 
policies; 
(6) conducting outreach to parents and elemen-
tary school (such as kindergarten) teachers to dis-
cuss the educational, developmental, and other needs 
of individual children; 
(7) helping parents of dual language learner 
children understand— 
(A) the instructional and other services 
provided by the school in which such child will 
enroll after participation in the child care and 
early learning program; and 
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(B) as appropriate, the information pro-
vided to parents of dual language learners 
under section 1112(e)(3) of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of the 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6312(e)(3)); 
(8) developing and implementing a family out-
reach and support program, in cooperation with en-
tities carrying out parent and family engagement ef-
forts under title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), 
and family outreach and support efforts under sub-
title B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.), taking 
into consideration the language needs of parents of 
dual language learner children; 
(9) assisting families, administrators, and 
teachers in enhancing educational and developmental 
continuity and continuity of parental involvement in 
activities between child care and early learning serv-
ices and elementary school classes; 
(10) linking the services provided in such child 
care and early learning program with educational 
services, including services relating to language, lit-
eracy, and numeracy, provided by such local edu-
cational agency; 
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(11) helping parents (including in this para-
graph grandparents and kinship caregivers, as ap-
propriate) to understand the importance of parental 
involvement in a child’s academic success while 
teaching the parents strategies for maintaining pa-
rental involvement as their child moves from a child 
care and early learning program to elementary 
school; 
(12) helping parents understand the instruc-
tional and other services provided by the school in 
which their child will enroll after participation in the 
child care and early learning program; and 
(13) developing and implementing a system to 
increase child care and early learning program par-
ticipation of underserved populations of eligible chil-
dren. 
(b) DISSEMINATION AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 
The Secretary shall— 
(1) disseminate to prime sponsors information 
on effective policies and activities relating to the 
transition of children from child care and early 
learning programs to public schools; and 
(2) provide technical assistance to such prime 
sponsors to promote and assist such prime sponsors 
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to adopt and implement such effective policies and 
activities. 
SEC. 123. ADEQUATE NUTRITION SERVICES. 
In accordance with the purposes of this title, the Sec-
retary shall establish procedures to ensure that adequate 
nutrition services will be provided in child care and early 
learning programs under this title. In ensuring the provi-
sion of those services, the Secretary may enter into an ar-
rangement with the Secretary of Agriculture to make use 
of the summer food service program and the child and 
adult care food program carried out under sections 13 and 
17 of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act 
(42 U.S.C. 1761, 1766) and relevant programs under the 
Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1771 et seq.), to 
the fullest extent appropriate and consistent with the pro-
visions of such Acts. 
SEC. 124. PARTICIPATION IN CHILD CARE AND EARLY 
LEARNING PROGRAMS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall by regulation 
prescribe eligibility for the participation of persons in child 
care and early learning programs assisted under this title. 
(b) ELIGIBLE AGES.—Such regulation shall provide 
that all children who are younger than the age of compul-
sory school attendance shall be eligible regardless of family 
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income, disability status, citizenship status, employment 
of a family member, or circumstance. 
(c) PRIME SPONSOR ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION 
RESPONSIBILITIES.—A prime sponsor shall— 
(1) determine eligibility under this title based 
on standards prescribed by the Secretary under sub-
section (a); 
(2) not establish more stringent or exclusive re-
quirements for eligibility under this title than the 
eligibility standards prescribed by the Secretary; and 
(3) serve all families that request child care and 
early learning services through the prime sponsor’s 
program. 
Subtitle C—Administration 
SEC. 131. THE OFFICE OF CHILD CARE. 
(a) PRINCIPAL AGENCY.—The Office of Child Care 
of the Department of Health and Human Services shall 
be the principal agency of the Department for the admin-
istration of this title and for the coordination of child care 
and early learning programs and other activities relating 
to child care and early learning. 
(b) COORDINATION OF CHILD CARE PROGRAMS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.— 
(A) 
DEPARTMENT
OF
HEALTH
AND 
HUMAN SERVICES.—The Secretary shall take all 
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necessary action to coordinate child care and 
early learning programs under the Secretary’s 
jurisdiction, including with the Office of Head 
Start. 
(B) DEPARTMENT
OF
EDUCATION.—The 
Secretary shall take all necessary action to co-
ordinate such programs with the Department of 
Education. 
(2) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall pro-
mulgate regulations to ensure that entities that are 
funded by the Department of Health and Human 
Services to carry out activities relating to child care 
and early learning will coordinate the activities with 
the programs carried out under this title. 
(3) TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary 
shall ensure that joint technical assistance efforts 
will result in the development of coordinated ef-
forts— 
(A) between the offices within the Depart-
ment of Health and Human Services; and 
(B) between the Department of Health and 
Human Services and other Federal agencies, in-
cluding the Department of Education, that 
carry out those activities. 
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(c) PROCEDURES, POLICIES, REGULATIONS.—The 
Secretary may establish such procedures, policies, and reg-
ulations as may be necessary to carry out this title. 
SEC. 132. ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS AND STAND-
ARDS. 
(a) REQUIREMENTS AND STANDARDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
administrative requirements and standards con-
sistent with the requirements and standards de-
scribed in subsections (a) through (f), and (h), of 
section 644 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9839). 
The established requirements and standards shall 
apply to the child care and early learning programs 
carried out under this title, and the prime sponsors 
carrying out such programs, as the case may be. 
(2) ADJUSTMENTS.—The Secretary may make 
such adjustments to the requirements, standards, 
qualifications, development activities, and limitations 
specified in paragraph (1) and sections 133(a), 134, 
136(a), 139, and 141, as may be necessary to ensure 
effective administration of this title. 
(3) ADMINISTRATIVE
CONTROLS.—The Sec-
retary shall prescribe regulations to ensure that pro-
grams under this title have adequate internal admin-
istrative controls, accounting requirements, per-
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100 
sonnel standards, evaluation procedures, and other 
policies as may be necessary to promote the effective 
use of funds. 
(b) FACILITIES.— 
(1) OWNED
OR
LEASED
BY
FEDERAL
AGEN-
CIES.—The Secretary, after consultation with other 
appropriate officials of the Federal Government, 
shall within 16 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act prepare and submit to Congress a report 
that— 
(A) describes the extent to which facilities 
owned or leased by Federal agencies (including 
departments) could be made available to prime 
sponsors, through appropriate arrangements, 
for use as facilities for child care and early 
learning programs under this title during times 
and periods when the owned or leased facilities 
are not utilized fully for their usual purposes; 
and 
(B) the Secretary’s recommendations (in-
cluding recommendations for changes through 
legislation) or proposed actions for such use. 
(2) OWNED OR LEASED IN SERVICE AREA.— 
The Secretary shall require, as a condition for the 
receipt of financial assistance under this title, that 
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101 
any prime sponsor under this title agree to conduct 
a review and prepare and submit to the Secretary a 
report that— 
(A) describes the extent to which facilities 
owned or leased by such prime sponsor, or by 
other organizations in the service area, could be 
made available, through appropriate arrange-
ments, for use as facilities for child care and 
early learning programs under this title during 
times and periods when the owned or leased fa-
cilities are not utilized fully for their usual pur-
poses; and 
(B) the prime sponsor’s proposed actions 
for such use. 
(c) CAPITAL EXPENDITURES.— 
(1) CONSTRUCTION.—Upon a determination by 
the Secretary that suitable facilities (including public 
school facilities) are not otherwise available to prime 
sponsors to carry out child care and early learning 
programs, that the lack of suitable facilities will in-
hibit the operation of such programs, and that con-
struction of such facilities is more cost-effective than 
purchase of available facilities or renovation, the 
Secretary, in the discretion of the Secretary, may 
authorize the use of financial assistance under this 
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102 
title to make payments for capital expenditures re-
lated to construction of facilities that will be used to 
carry out such programs. The Secretary shall estab-
lish uniform procedures for prime sponsors to re-
quest approval for such payments, and shall pro-
mote, to the extent practicable, the collocation of 
child care and early learning programs with other 
programs serving children and families. 
(2) CONSTRUCTION, 
RENOVATION, 
VEHICLE 
PURCHASE.—Such payments may be used for capital 
expenditures (including paying the cost of amor-
tizing the principal, and paying interest on, loans) 
such as expenditures for— 
(A) construction of facilities that are not 
in existence on the date of the determination, if 
such construction is more cost-effective than 
purchase or renovation; 
(B) major renovation of facilities in exist-
ence on such date, if major renovation is more 
cost-effective than purchase, construction, or 
minor renovation; and 
(C) purchase of vehicles used for programs 
conducted at child care and early learning pro-
gram facilities eligible for a payment under this 
subsection. 
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103 
(3) WAGES FOR CONSTRUCTION OR RENOVA-
TION.—All laborers and mechanics employed by con-
tractors or subcontractors in the construction or ren-
ovation of facilities to be used to carry out child care 
and early learning programs under this title shall be 
paid wages that are not less than the wages pre-
vailing on similar construction or renovation in the 
service area, as determined by the Secretary of 
Labor in accordance with subchapter IV of chapter 
31 of title 40, United States Code (commonly known 
as the ‘‘Davis-Bacon Act’’). 
SEC. 133. APPEALS, NOTICE, AND HEARING. 
(a) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall establish ap-
peals, notice, hearing, and other procedures consistent (ex-
cept as otherwise provided in this section) with the proce-
dures described in section 646 of the Head Start Act (42 
U.S.C. 9841). The established procedures shall apply to 
the child care and early learning programs carried out 
under this title, and the prime sponsors carrying out such 
programs, as the case may be. 
(b) WITHHOLDING OF FUNDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall take the 
action described in paragraph (2) whenever the Sec-
retary, after reasonable notice and opportunity for a 
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105 
failure) until the Secretary is satisfied that there is 
no longer any such failure to comply, or the non-
compliance will be promptly corrected. The Secretary 
may authorize the continuation of payments with re-
spect to any program or service assisted under this 
title which is being carried out pursuant to the cor-
responding plan or application referred to in para-
graph (1) and which is not involved in the non-
compliance. 
SEC. 134. RECORDS AND AUDITS. 
The Secretary shall establish record and audit re-
quirements consistent with the requirements described in 
section 647 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9842). The 
established requirements shall apply to the child care and 
early learning programs carried out under this title, and 
the prime sponsors carrying out such programs, as the 
case may be. 
SEC. 135. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING. 
(a) PRESERVICE AND INSERVICE TRAINING.—The 
Secretary is authorized to make payments to provide fi-
nancial assistance to enable individuals employed or pre-
paring for employment in child care and early learning 
programs assisted under this title, including volunteers, 
to participate in programs of preservice or inservice train-
ing for professional or nonprofessional personnel, to be 
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conducted by any prime sponsor carrying out a child care 
and early learning program, or any institution of higher 
education, including a community college, or by any com-
bination of those prime sponsors or institutions. The fi-
nancial assistance shall include scholarships and funding 
for books, transportation, and other comprehensive needs. 
(b) PRIME SPONSOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND 
PLANNING.—The Secretary is authorized to, directly or 
through grant or contract, make technical assistance avail-
able to entities who are eligible and seek to become prime 
sponsors, and to prime sponsors, to assist the entities and 
prime sponsors in planning, developing, and carrying out 
child care and early learning programs. 
(c) PRIME SPONSOR FACILITIES ASSISTANCE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 
to make, directly or through grant or contract, tech-
nical assistance and other support available to pro-
viders of services through child care and early learn-
ing programs, to support the providers in meeting 
applicable facilities codes, if the providers are— 
(A) providers in rural areas; 
(B) family child care home providers; or 
(C) providers serving children belonging to 
Indian Tribes, Native Hawaiian children, chil-
dren of migrant and seasonal farmworkers, low- 
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income children, or underserved children (in-
cluding children with disabilities, homeless chil-
dren, children who have been abused or ne-
glected, and children in foster care). 
(2) APPLICABLE
FACILITIES
CODE.—In this 
subsection, the term ‘‘applicable facilities code’’ 
means— 
(A) a code promulgated under section 
121(b)(4), for a provider in a State not de-
scribed in subparagraph (B); and 
(B) a code or standards determined to be 
sufficient under section 121(b)(6), for a pro-
vider in a State to which the code or standards 
apply. 
(d) PRIME SPONSOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Prime sponsors shall carry 
out training and quality improvement activities, in-
cluding— 
(A) activities that support child care and 
early learning programs (including providers) in 
meeting national program standards; and 
(B) supporting staff in meeting qualifica-
tions described in section 136, including pro-
viding paid release time to staff, to engage in 
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activities that enable the staff to meet the 
qualifications. 
(2) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary is 
authorized to make financial assistance available to 
prime sponsors to carry out such training and qual-
ity improvement activities. 
(e) STAFF TRAINING.—The Secretary shall prescribe 
regulations implementing a training program for staff of 
child care and early learning programs assisted under this 
title, based on the training program of the military child 
care program. Satisfactory completion of the training pro-
gram, which may be accomplished through a professional 
preparation or development program, shall be a condition 
of employment of any person as a member of the staff 
of such a child care and early learning program. The train-
ing program established under this subsection shall cover, 
at a minimum, training in each of the following: 
(1) Early childhood development. 
(2) Activities and disciplinary techniques appro-
priate for children of different ages. 
(3) Child abuse prevention and detection. 
(4) Cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other 
emergency medical procedures. 
(f) WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY.— 
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(1) OUTREACH PROGRAM.—From amounts allo-
cated under section 103(b), the Secretary shall de-
velop and implement a program of outreach to re-
cruit and train professionals from diverse back-
grounds to become teachers in child care and early 
learning programs. 
(2) GRANTS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—From amounts allo-
cated under section 103(b), the Secretary is au-
thorized to award grants, for a period of not 
less than 5 years, to— 
(i) entities that carry out training 
through a fund sponsored at least in part 
by a labor organization; and 
(ii) institutions of higher education, 
with priority for part B institutions, His-
panic-serving institutions, and Tribal Col-
leges and Universities (as the 3 types of 
institutions are defined in clauses (i) 
through (iii) of section 241(1)(A) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1033(1)(A))). 
(B) USE OF FUNDS.—An institution that 
receives such a grant may— 
(i) use the grant funds— 
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(I) to improve the child care and 
early learning workforce; 
(II) to recruit child care and 
early learning teachers and other staff 
who want to obtain additional creden-
tials related to child care and early 
learning; 
(III) to recruit and train profes-
sionals from diverse backgrounds to 
become teachers in child care and 
early learning programs; 
(IV) to promote access and af-
fordability through direct student sup-
port, grants, scholarships, and other 
forms of student financial aid to stu-
dents 
pursuing 
early 
childhood 
coursework and degrees in order to re-
duce or eliminate the need for such 
students to take out loans for the re-
lated costs of attendance; 
(V) to create seamless, articu-
lated, teacher preparation pathways; 
and 
(VI) to develop institutional poli-
cies that award credit for students’ 
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previous postsecondary early child-
hood coursework and degrees as well 
as 
for 
demonstrated 
competency 
through— 
(aa) prior work experience; 
and 
(bb) 
apprenticeships 
that 
lead to credentials, or associate 
or baccalaureate degrees; and 
(ii) make a portion of the grant funds 
available for students training to become 
staff of child care and early learning pro-
grams, to cover the corresponding tuition 
and other costs of attendance. 
SEC. 136. STAFF QUALIFICATIONS AND DEVELOPMENT. 
(a) QUALIFICATION AND DEVELOPMENT.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary, after con-
sultation with other Federal agencies and on the 
basis of the recommendations of the Committee es-
tablished pursuant to section 121(a)(3), shall estab-
lish staff qualification and development requirements 
based on such requirements described in section 
648A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9843a), 
based on such requirements being implemented by 
the military child care program (including certifi-
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cation of family child care home providers), and in-
cluding a requirement to satisfactorily complete 
training under section 135(e). The established re-
quirements shall include the requirements described 
in subsection (b) (relating to compensation). The es-
tablished requirements shall apply to the child care 
and early learning programs carried out under this 
title, and the prime sponsors carrying out such pro-
grams, as the case may be. 
(2) OBJECTIVES.—The established require-
ments shall be designed to— 
(A)(i) lead to high-quality child care and 
early learning service delivery, including the use 
of targeted strategies and resources provided by 
prime sponsors to ensure the diverse, incumbent 
child care and early learning workforce retains 
access to employment in such programs; and 
(ii) take into account workforce recruit-
ment challenges and the need for a diverse 
workforce; 
(B) create a pathway for members of the 
child care and early learning service workforce 
to build on their credentials; and 
(C) provide enough time (which shall be 
not less than 6 years after the date of that es-
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tablishment) for staff to meet any educational 
requirements in the established requirements. 
(b) PAY.— 
(1) COMPETITIVE RATES OF COMPENSATION.— 
For the purpose of providing child care and early 
learning programs with a qualified and stable work-
force, each prime sponsor shall ensure that employ-
ees (including employees of a delegate provider) at 
a child care and early learning center and family 
child care home providers, including teachers and 
other staff of family child care home providers, shall 
be paid under a pay scale that provides for rates of 
compensation that— 
(A)(i) except as provided in clause (ii), are 
comparable with the rates of compensation paid 
to employees of the corresponding local edu-
cational agency with similar training, seniority, 
and experience; or 
(ii) for a position not typically found at the 
corresponding local educational agency, are the 
rates specified in the pay scale for the military 
child care program; and 
(B) are not less than a living wage, as de-
termined by the Secretary. 
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(2) PERIODIC REVIEWS.—In recommending and 
establishing requirements under subsection (a) and 
this subsection, the Committee established pursuant 
to section 121(a)(3) and the Secretary, respectively, 
shall periodically conduct reviews of the rates of 
compensation for employers, teachers, and staff de-
scribed in paragraph (1). The Committee and Sec-
retary shall determine whether the rates are increas-
ing at a pace that is not less than the rate of the 
Consumer Price Index—All Urban Consumers, and 
shall adjust the rates to ensure such an increase. 
(3) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, no Federal funds may be used to 
pay any part of the compensation of an employee, 
teacher, or staff member described in paragraph (1) 
to carry out a child care and early learning program, 
if such compensation, including non-Federal funds, 
exceeds a rate equal to the rate payable for level II 
of the Executive Schedule under section 5313 of title 
5, United States Code. 
(4) COMPENSATION.—In this subsection, the 
term ‘‘compensation’’— 
(A) includes salary, bonuses, periodic pay-
ments, severance pay, the value of any vacation 
time, the value of a compensatory or paid leave 
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benefit, and the fair market value of any em-
ployee perquisite or benefit; and 
(B) includes any prime sponsor expendi-
ture for a health, medical, life insurance, dis-
ability, retirement, or any other employee wel-
fare or pension benefit. 
(c) CURRICULUM SUPPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Prime sponsors shall estab-
lish and implement a plan to ensure all teachers in 
a child care and early learning program, including 
family child care home providers, have curriculum 
support. 
(2) CURRICULUM SUPPORT.—That curriculum 
support— 
(A) may include the use of curriculum spe-
cialists, as in the military child care program; 
and 
(B) shall include— 
(i) special teaching activities at loca-
tions that are easily accessible by the 
teachers; 
(ii) daily oversight and instruction of 
employees providing child care and early 
learning services; 
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(iii) daily assistance in the prepara-
tion of lesson plans, provided through indi-
vidual specialists or resources for staff that 
allow teachers to engage in professional re-
sponsibilities such as daily lesson planning; 
(iv) assistance with child abuse pre-
vention and detection; 
(v) assistance with activities to pro-
mote children’s cognitive development, be-
havior management, and mental health; 
and 
(vi) assistance with improving the de-
livery of instruction and with measuring 
and tracking children’s outcomes. 
SEC. 137. RESEARCH, DEMONSTRATIONS, AND EVALUA-
TION. 
(a) GENERAL OBJECTIVES.—The Secretary shall 
carry out a continuing program of research, demonstra-
tion, and evaluation activities, in order to— 
(1) focus national research efforts to attain a 
fuller understanding of the processes of child devel-
opment and early learning outcomes and the effects 
of programs on those processes and outcomes; 
(2) foster continuous improvement in the qual-
ity of the child care and early learning programs 
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carried out under this title and in their effectiveness 
in enabling participating children and their families 
to succeed in school and otherwise; 
(3) ensure that the results of research and re-
lated development efforts are reflected in the con-
duct of programs affecting children through the im-
provement and expansion of child care and early 
learning programs; and 
(4) develop, test, and disseminate information 
on new ideas for addressing the needs of low-income 
and underserved children (including children with 
disabilities, homeless children, children who have 
been abused or neglected, and children in foster 
care) and their families and communities, and fur-
thering in other ways the purposes of this title. 
(b) SPECIFIC
OBJECTIVES.—The research, dem-
onstration, and evaluation activities under this title shall 
include components designed to— 
(1) permit ongoing assessment of the quality 
and effectiveness of the child care and early learning 
programs under this title; 
(2) contribute to developing knowledge con-
cerning factors associated with the quality and effec-
tiveness of child care and early learning programs 
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and in identifying ways in which services provided 
under this title may be improved; 
(3) assist in developing knowledge concerning 
the factors that promote or inhibit healthy develop-
ment and effective functioning of children and their 
families, including physical, mental, vision, and oral 
health, both during and following participation in a 
child care and early learning program; 
(4) permit comparisons of children and families 
participating in child care and early learning pro-
grams— 
(A) with children and families receiving 
other child care, or early childhood education 
and development, services or programs; and 
(B) with other appropriate control groups; 
(5) contribute to understanding the characteris-
tics and needs of population groups eligible for serv-
ices provided under this title and the impact of such 
services on the individuals served and the service 
areas in which such services are provided; 
(6) provide for disseminating and promoting the 
use of the findings from such research, demonstra-
tion, and evaluation activities; 
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(7) promote exploration of areas in which 
knowledge is insufficient, and that will otherwise 
contribute to fulfilling the purposes of this title; 
(8)(A) contribute to understanding the impact 
of child care and early learning services delivered in 
classrooms that include both children with disabil-
ities and children who are not children with disabil-
ities, on both types of children; and 
(B) disseminate promising practices for increas-
ing the availability and quality of child care and 
early learning services that are so delivered and 
classrooms described in subparagraph (A); 
(9) contribute to understanding the impact of 
different child care and early learning models, in-
cluding those with varying teacher compensation, 
preparation, and workplace supports, in addressing 
educational disparities and inequalities, including 
disparities and inequalities based on income, and 
disparities and inequalities based on culture, and 
race and ethnicity; 
(10) contribute to the understanding of pro-
viding effective child care and early learning pro-
grams to dual language learner children, children 
with disabilities, culturally diverse families, racially 
and ethnically diverse families, children belonging to 
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an Indian Tribe, Native Hawaiian children, and chil-
dren of migrant and seasonal farmworkers, and to 
service areas with many low-income children; and 
(11) carry out— 
(A) research to determine the nature of 
child development processes and the impact of 
various influences upon those processes, includ-
ing workplace conditions and supports, to de-
velop techniques to measure and evaluate child 
development, to develop standards to evaluate 
professional and paraprofessional child develop-
ment personnel, and to determine how child 
care and early learning and related programs 
conducted in either family child care homes or 
centers affect child development processes; 
(B) research to test alternative methods of 
providing child development and related serv-
ices, and to develop and test innovative ap-
proaches to achieve maximum development of 
children; 
(C) evaluation of findings from research 
conducted under this paragraph and the devel-
opment of and effective application of those 
findings; 
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(D) dissemination and application of re-
sults from research and related development ef-
forts and demonstration projects to child care 
and early learning programs, related programs, 
and early childhood education; 
(E) production of informational systems 
and other resources necessary to support the 
activities authorized under this paragraph; and 
(F) integration of national child develop-
ment research efforts under this title into a fo-
cused national research program, including the 
coordination of research and development con-
ducted by entities under this section with re-
search and development conducted by other 
agencies, organizations, and individuals. 
(c) CONDUCT OF RESEARCH, DEMONSTRATION, AND 
EVALUATION ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary, in order to 
conduct research, demonstration, and evaluation activities 
under this section— 
(1) may carry out such activities directly, or 
through grants to, or contracts or cooperative agree-
ments with, public or private entities; 
(2) shall, to the extent appropriate, undertake 
such activities in collaboration with Federal agencies 
(other than the Department of Health and Human 
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Services), and with non-Federal agencies, Indian 
Tribes, and Tribal organizations, conducting similar 
activities; 
(3) shall ensure that evaluation of such activi-
ties in a specific program is conducted by persons 
not directly involved in the operation of such pro-
gram; 
(4) may require prime sponsors to provide for 
independent evaluations; 
(5) may approve, in appropriate cases, commu-
nity-based cooperative research and evaluation ef-
forts to enable prime sponsors to collaborate with 
qualified researchers not directly involved in pro-
gram administration or operation of a program 
funded under this title; and 
(6) may collaborate with organizations with ex-
pertise in inclusive educational strategies for pre-
schoolers who are children with disabilities. 
(d) COORDINATION OF RESEARCH.— 
(1) TRANSFERS.—Funds available to any Fed-
eral agency (including a department) for the pur-
poses stated in subsection (a) or the activities stated 
in subsection (b) shall be available for transfer, with 
the approval of the head of the agency involved, in 
whole or in part, to the Secretary for such use as 
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is consistent with the purposes for which such funds 
were appropriated, and the funds so transferred 
shall be expendable by the Secretary for the pur-
poses for which the transfer was made. 
(2) COORDINATION.—In carrying out activities 
under this section, the Secretary shall— 
(A) coordinate, through the Office of Child 
Care and Early Learning, established under 
section 131, all child development research, 
training, and related development efforts con-
ducted by the Department of Health and 
Human Services and, to the extent feasible, by 
other agencies, organizations, and individuals; 
(B) consult with— 
(i) individuals from relevant academic 
disciplines; 
(ii) individuals who are involved in the 
operation of child care and early learning 
programs and individuals who are involved 
in the operation of other child and family 
service programs; 
(iii) appropriate officials from Indian 
Tribes and Tribal organizations; and 
(iv) individuals from organizations in-
volved with, and academic disciplines re-
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lated to, children and families, ensuring 
that the individuals consulted under this 
subparagraph reflect the multicultural na-
ture of the children and families served by 
the child care and early learning programs 
and the multidisciplinary nature of the 
programs; 
(C) whenever feasible and appropriate, ob-
tain the views of persons participating in and 
served by programs assisted under this title 
with respect to activities under this section; and 
(D) establish, to the extent appropriate, 
working relationships with faculty members of 
institutions of higher education, as defined in 
section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001), located in the area in 
which any evaluation under this section is being 
conducted, to participate in such evaluation, un-
less there is no such institution of higher edu-
cation willing and able to participate in such 
evaluation. 
(3) COUNCIL.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—There is established a 
Child Development Research Council, consisting 
of— 
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(i) a representative of the Office of 
Child Care and Early Learning (who shall 
serve as chairperson); and 
(ii) a representative from each of the 
Federal agencies and offices determined to 
be appropriate by the Secretary. 
(B) MEETINGS.—The Council shall meet 
at least annually and at such more frequent 
times as the Council may determine to be nec-
essary. 
(C) DUTIES.—The Council shall ensure co-
ordination of child care and early learning serv-
ices under the jurisdiction of the agencies and 
offices represented on the Council and carry out 
the provisions of this section so as to ensure— 
(i) maximum utilization of available 
resources through the prevention of dupli-
cation of activities; 
(ii) a division of labor, insofar as is 
compatible with the purposes of each of 
the agencies or offices represented on the 
Council, among those agencies and offices 
to ensure maximum progress toward the 
achievement of the purposes of this sec-
tion; and 
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(iii) recommendation of priorities for 
federally funded research and related de-
velopment that are related to the purposes 
of this section and those stated in section 
101. 
(e) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Secretary shall make an 
annual report to Congress— 
(1) summarizing— 
(A) the Secretary’s activities and accom-
plishments during the preceding year under this 
section; and 
(B) the grants, contracts, or other ar-
rangements entered into during the preceding 
year under this section; and 
(2) making such recommendations as the Sec-
retary may determine to be appropriate. 
(f) PLAN.—The Secretary shall develop, and periodi-
cally update, a plan governing the research, demonstra-
tion, and evaluation activities under this section. 
(g) OWNERSHIP OF RESULTS.—The Secretary shall 
take necessary steps to ensure that all studies, reports, 
proposals, and data produced or developed with Federal 
funds under this title shall become the property of the 
United States. 
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SEC. 138. REPORTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—At least once during every 2-year 
period, the Secretary shall prepare a report concerning the 
status of children (including low-income children, children 
with disabilities, dual language learner children, homeless 
children, children in foster care, children participating in 
child care and early learning programs on Indian land, 
and children participating in migrant or seasonal child 
care and early learning programs) participating in child 
care and early learning programs, including the number 
of participating children and the services being provided 
to such children. 
(b) CONTENTS.—Such report shall include— 
(1) a statement for the then most recently con-
cluded fiscal year specifying— 
(A) the amount of funds received, by prime 
sponsors that are designated under section 113, 
to provide child care and early learning services 
in a period before such fiscal year; and 
(B) the amount of funds received, by prime 
sponsors that are newly designated under sec-
tion 113, to provide such services in such fiscal 
year; 
(2) a description of the distribution of child 
care and early learning services relative to the dis-
tribution of children who are in need of child care 
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and early learning programs, including geographic 
distribution within States, and information on the 
number of children receiving those services; 
(3) a statement identifying how funds made 
available under section 112(a)(1) were distributed 
and used at national, regional, and local levels; 
(4) a statement specifying the amount of funds 
provided as the non-Federal share of the costs of 
child care and early learning programs, and the 
source of such funding; 
(5) the cost per child of carrying out child care 
and early learning programs, and how such cost var-
ies by region; 
(6) a description of the level and nature of par-
ticipation of parents and family members in child 
care and early learning programs as volunteers and 
in other capacities; 
(7) information concerning child care and early 
learning center staff, including salaries, education, 
training, experience, and staff turnover; 
(8) information concerning children partici-
pating in child care and early learning programs, in-
cluding information on family income, cultural back-
ground, racial and ethnic background, homelessness, 
whether such a child is in foster care or was referred 
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129 
by a child welfare agency, disability, and whether the 
child’s family receives benefits under part A of title 
IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et 
seq.); 
(9) using data from the monitoring conducted 
under section 121— 
(A) a description of the extent to which 
programs funded under this title comply with 
program standards and regulations in effect 
under this title; 
(B) a description of the types and condi-
tion of facilities in which such programs are lo-
cated; and 
(C) the types of organizations that receive 
funds under this title through such programs; 
(10) a description of the types of services pro-
vided through the programs to children and their 
families, both on site and through referrals, includ-
ing services related to health, mental health, dental 
care, vision care, parenting education, physical fit-
ness, and literacy training; 
(11) information from a study of the delivery of 
child care and early learning programs to Indian 
children, to Native Hawaiian children, and to chil-
dren of migrant or seasonal farmworker families; 
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(12) information on the delivery of disability-re-
lated services in order to— 
(A) determine whether child care and early 
learning programs are making timely referrals 
to the State or local agency responsible for pro-
viding services under section 619 or part C of 
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 
(20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et seq.); 
(B) identify barriers to timely evaluations 
and eligibility determinations by the State or 
local agency responsible for providing services 
under section 619 or part C of the Individuals 
with Disabilities Education Act; and 
(C) determine under what circumstances 
and for what length of time child care and early 
learning programs are providing disability-re-
lated services for children who have not been 
determined under the Individuals with Disabil-
ities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.) to 
be children with disabilities; and 
(13) information on how child care and early 
learning programs serve populations of low-income 
children, minority children, and dual language learn-
er children, the extent to which disparities exist in 
early learning outcomes of participants in such pro-
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131 
grams, and how such programs address disparities 
in early learning outcomes. 
(c) SUBMISSION.—The Secretary shall submit each 
report prepared under subsection (a) to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and 
the Committee on Education and Workforce of the House 
of Representatives. 
SEC. 139. NONDISCRIMINATION PROVISIONS. 
The Secretary shall establish nondiscrimination re-
quirements consistent with the requirements described in 
section 654 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9849). The 
established requirements shall apply to the child care and 
early learning programs carried out under this title, and 
the prime sponsors carrying out such programs, as the 
case may be. 
SEC. 140. ADVANCE FUNDING. 
For the purpose of affording adequate notice of fund-
ing available under this title, appropriations for carrying 
out this title are authorized to be included in an appro-
priation Act for the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year 
for which the appropriations are available for obligation. 
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132 
SEC. 141. PARENTAL CONSENT REQUIREMENT FOR NON-
EMERGENCY INTRUSIVE PHYSICAL EXAMINA-
TIONS. 
The Secretary shall establish a parental consent re-
quirement consistent with the requirement described in 
section 657A of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9852a). 
The established requirement shall apply to the child care 
and early learning programs carried out under this title, 
and the prime sponsors carrying out such programs, as 
the case may be. 
Subtitle D—Special Programs 
SEC. 151. SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING TO PRIME SPONSORS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to 
provide supplemental financial assistance for the activities 
described in subsection (b) or the purposes described in 
subsection (c), to prime sponsors, who— 
(1) demonstrate barriers— 
(A) to scaling the services and processes 
needed to fully implement the prime sponsors’ 
child care and early learning programs; and 
(B) to meeting the national program 
standards; and 
(2) need financial assistance, as determined by 
the Secretary, for those activities or purposes, re-
spectively. 
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133 
(b) ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary may provide the sup-
plemental financial assistance for activities consisting of— 
(1) conducting a facilities review as described in 
section 132(b)(2) and accessing adequate facilities; 
(2) establishing coordination arrangements and 
processes with other entities, including local edu-
cational agencies and related entities, organizations 
delivering health and social services in the service 
area involved, and the State; 
(3) establishing training and professional devel-
opment protocols and processes under sections 135 
and 136; 
(4) meeting accreditation requirements; 
(5) providing supports to enable family child 
care home providers to participate as providers with-
in the child care and early learning program carried 
out by the prime sponsor involved and to enable the 
prime sponsor to meet the national program stand-
ards; 
(6) securing materials and resources for profes-
sional learning opportunities; and 
(7) other activities related to the establishment, 
expansion, and scaling of services and processes 
needed to fully implement the prime sponsor’s child 
care and early learning program and enable the 
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prime sponsor to meet the national program stand-
ards. 
(c) PURPOSES.—The Secretary may provide the sup-
plemental financial assistance to a prime sponsor that 
meets the requirements of subsection (a) and has difficulty 
in providing a non-Federal share because the prime spon-
sor serves an area with a high concentration of families 
with a family income of not more than, or slightly above, 
200 percent of the poverty line, for the purposes of in-
creasing the Federal share of the costs described in section 
121(c)(2)(A). 
SEC. 152. SPECIAL GRANTS TO STATES. 
(a) GRANTS.—On approving an application submitted 
by any State, the Secretary is authorized to provide a 
grant to the State for carrying out activities described in 
subsection (b). 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A State that receives a grant 
under subsection (a) may use the grant funds for— 
(1) identifying child care and early learning 
services goals and needs within the State; 
(2) furnishing child care providers with start-up 
funding and technical assistance; 
(3) supporting compensation for the child care 
and early learning workforce comparable to com-
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pensation for the primary education workforce, 
which may include retention or bonus awards; 
(4) establishing or expanding the operation of 
community- or neighborhood-based family child care 
networks by providing grants and contracts for 
training; 
(5) supporting the recruitment, training, and 
professional development of the child care and early 
learning workforce; 
(6) assisting in the establishment of Child Care 
and Early Learning Councils and strengthening the 
capability of such Councils to effectively advise on 
the child care and early learning programs; 
(7) encouraging the cooperation and participa-
tion of State agencies in providing child care and 
early learning services, including health, family plan-
ning, mental health, education, nutrition, family, so-
cial, and rehabilitative services if that cooperation 
and participation are requested by appropriate prime 
sponsors in the development and implementation of 
child care and early learning plans; 
(8) encouraging the full utilization of resources 
and facilities for child care and early learning pro-
grams within the State; 
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carry out this subchapter and the Child Care for 
Every Community Act.’’. 
(b) RELATIONSHIP TO THE CHILD CARE FOR EVERY 
COMMUNITY ACT.—Section 658M of the Child Care and 
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858k) 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) RELATIONSHIP
TO
THE CHILD CARE
FOR 
EVERY COMMUNITY ACT.—An eligible child who is eligible 
for child care and early learning services under the Child 
Care for Every Community Act shall only receive child 
care services under this subchapter that the child is ineli-
gible for under that Act.’’. 
Æ 
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