I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1143 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to address the increased burden 
that maintaining the health and hygiene of infants and toddlers places 
on families in need, the resultant adverse health effects on children 
and families, and the limited child care options available for infants 
and toddlers who lack sufficient diapers. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 16, 2017 
Mr. ELLISON (for himself, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. NADLER, Ms. 
NORTON, and Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to address the 
increased burden that maintaining the health and hy-
giene of infants and toddlers places on families in need, 
the resultant adverse health effects on children and fami-
lies, and the limited child care options available for in-
fants and toddlers who lack sufficient diapers. 
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 ‘‘Hygiene Assistance 
for Families of Infants and Toddlers Act of 2017’’. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
SEC. 2. IMPROVING OPPORTUNITY DIAPER DISTRIBUTION 
DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. 
Part P of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 280g et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
‘‘SEC. 399V–7. DIAPER DISTRIBUTION DEMONSTRATION 
PROJECT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Administration for Children and Families, shall make 
grants to eligible entities to conduct demonstration 
projects that implement and evaluate strategies to help 
families with eligible children to address the diapering 
needs of such children. 
‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts provided through a 
grant under this section shall be used to— 
‘‘(1) fund diaper distribution demonstration 
projects that will reduce the substantial cost of dia-
pers and diapering supplies by making diapers and 
diapering supplies available to low-income families; 
‘‘(2) evaluate the effects of such demonstration 
projects on mitigating health risks, including diaper 
dermatitis, urinary tract infections, and increased 
rates of parental and child depression and anxiety, 
that can arise when low-income families do not have 
an adequate supply of diapers for infants and tod-
dlers; and 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
‘‘(3) integrate the diaper distribution dem-
onstration projects with other assistance programs 
serving families with eligible children. 
‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—An entity desiring a grant under 
this section shall submit to the Secretary an application 
that includes such information as the Secretary may re-
quire to ensure a likelihood of success in achieving the 
purposes of the grant listed in subsection (b). 
‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to receive 
a grant under this section, an entity shall be— 
‘‘(1) a State or local governmental entity; 
‘‘(2) an Indian tribe or tribal organization (as 
defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 
and Education Assistance Act); or 
‘‘(3) a nonprofit organization as described in 
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 and exempt from taxation under section 
501(a) of such Code. 
‘‘(e) NO EFFECT ON OTHER PROGRAMS.—Any as-
sistance or benefits provided to a family pursuant to a 
grant under this section shall be disregarded for purposes 
of determining the family’s eligibility for, or amount of, 
benefits under— 
‘‘(1) any other Federal needs-based program; or 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
‘‘(2) in the case of a grant under this section 
to a State, any State-funded, needs-based program 
that is financed in whole or in part with Federal 
funds. 
‘‘(f) REPORTS.—As a condition of receiving a grant 
under this section for a fiscal year, an entity shall submit 
to the Secretary, not later than 6 months after the end 
of the fiscal year, a report that specifies— 
‘‘(1) the number of children and the number of 
families receiving assistance under the diaper dis-
tribution demonstration projects funded through 
such grant for each month of the fiscal year; 
‘‘(2) the number of diapers, and the number of 
each type of diapering supply distributed through 
such projects for each month of the fiscal year; 
‘‘(3) the method or methods the entity uses to 
distribute diapers and diapering supplies through 
such projects; and 
‘‘(4) such other information as the Secretary 
may require. 
‘‘(g) EVALUATION.—The Secretary, in consultation 
with each entity that receives a grant under this section, 
shall— 
‘‘(1) not later than September 30, 2019— 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
‘‘(A) complete an evaluation of the effec-
tiveness of the diaper distribution demonstra-
tion projects carried out pursuant to this sec-
tion; 
‘‘(B) submit to the relevant congressional 
committees a report on the results of such eval-
uation; and 
‘‘(C) publish the results of the evaluation 
on the Internet Web site of the Department of 
Health and Human Services; and 
‘‘(2)(A) not later than September 30, 2022, up-
date the evaluation described in paragraph (1)(A); 
and 
‘‘(B) not later than 90 days after completion of 
the updated evaluation under subparagraph (B)— 
‘‘(i) submit to the relevant congressional 
committees a report describing the results of 
such evaluation; and 
‘‘(ii) update the Web site described in 
paragraph (1)(C) to include the results of such 
evaluation. 
‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘diaper’ means an absorbent gar-
ment that is washable or disposable that is worn by 
a child who is not toilet-trained. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
‘‘(2) The term ‘diapering supplies’ means items, 
including diaper wipes and diaper cream, necessary 
to ensure that a child using a diaper is properly 
cleaned and protected from diaper rash. 
‘‘(3) The term ‘eligible child’ means a child 
who— 
‘‘(A) is not toilet-trained; 
‘‘(B) has not attained 4 years of age, un-
less the entity determines that the child has a 
substantial physical or mental impairment that 
requires the child to wear diapers; and 
‘‘(C) is a member of a family whose income 
is not more than 130 percent of the poverty line 
(as defined by the Office of Management and 
Budget, and revised annually in accordance 
with section 673(2) of the Omnibus Budget 
Reconciliation Act of 1981) applicable to a fam-
ily of the size involved. 
‘‘(4) The term ‘toilet-trained’ means able and 
willing to use a toilet consistently such that diapers 
are not necessary on a daily basis. 
‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated for each of 
fiscal years 2018 through 2022, $25,000,000. 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY
OF
FUNDS.—Funds pro-
vided to an entity under this section for a fiscal year 
may be expended only in the fiscal year or the suc-
ceeding fiscal year.’’. 
Æ 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
18:47 Feb 24, 2017
Jkt 069200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H1143.IH
H1143
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS