I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2886 
To establish universal child care and early learning programs. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 28, 2021 
Mr. JONES (for himself, Mr. CARSON, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. GARCI´A 
of Illinois, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. 
JAYAPAL, Ms. JACOBS of California, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Mr. MCGOVERN, 
Mr. TAKANO, Ms. NORTON, Ms. BUSH, Ms. MENG, and Ms. CLARK of 
Massachusetts) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To establish universal child care and early learning programs. 
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 ‘‘Universal Child Care 
and Early Learning Act’’. 
TITLE I—CHILD CARE AND 
EARLY LEARNING PROGRAMS 
SEC. 101. STATEMENT OF PURPOSES. 
The purposes of this title are— 
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(1) to provide all young children with a fair and 
full opportunity to reach their full potential, by es-
tablishing and expanding programs, to create uni-
versal, comprehensive child care and early learning 
programs that are available to all young children; 
(2) to ensure that families can access afford-
able, high-quality child care and early learning pro-
grams regardless of circumstance; 
(3) to promote the school readiness of all young 
children by enhancing their cognitive, social, emo-
tional, and physical development— 
(A) in a learning environment that sup-
ports children’s growth in language, literacy, 
mathematics, science, cognitive abilities, social 
and emotional functioning, creative arts, phys-
ical skills, and approaches to learning; and 
(B) through the provision to children and 
their families of health, educational, nutritional, 
social, and other services that are determined, 
based on family needs assessments, to be nec-
essary; 
(4) to recognize and build upon the experience 
and success gained through the Head Start pro-
gram, the military child care program, and similar 
efforts; 
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(5) to provide that decisions on the nature of 
such child care and early learning programs be made 
at the community level with the full involvement of 
parents, family members, and other individuals and 
organizations in the community; and 
(6) to establish the legislative framework for 
child care and early learning services. 
SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. 
For purposes of this title: 
(1) CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PRO-
GRAM.—The term ‘‘child care and early learning 
program’’ means any program that provides child 
care and early learning services in child care and 
early learning centers (including schools) or in fam-
ily child care homes. 
(2) CHILD
WITH
A
DISABILITY.—The term 
‘‘child with a disability’’ means— 
(A) a child with a disability, as defined in 
section 602(3) of the Individuals with Disabil-
ities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1401(3)); and 
(B) an infant or toddler with a disability, 
as defined in section 632(5) of such Act (20 
U.S.C. 1432(5)). 
(3) 
COMMUNITY.—The 
term 
‘‘community’’ 
means a city, county, or multicity or multicounty 
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unit within a State, an Indian reservation (including 
Indians in any nearby off-reservation area des-
ignated by an appropriate tribal government in con-
sultation with the Secretary), or a neighborhood or 
other area (irrespective of boundaries or political 
subdivisions) that provides a suitable organizational 
base and possesses the commonality of interest need-
ed to operate a child care and early learning pro-
gram. 
(4) COVERED
CHILD.—The term ‘‘covered 
child’’ means a child who— 
(A) is— 
(i) not younger than 6 weeks of age; 
and 
(ii) not yet required to attend school, 
under the laws of compulsory school at-
tendance of the State in which the child re-
sides; and 
(B) meets the requirements of regulations 
issued under section 124. 
(5) DUAL
LANGUAGE
LEARNER.—The term 
‘‘dual language learner’’ means a child who is ac-
quiring two or more languages at the same time, or 
a child who is learning a second language while con-
tinuing to develop the child’s first language, includ-
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ing a child who may also be identified by a State or 
locality as ‘‘bilingual’’, ‘‘an English language learn-
er’’, ‘‘limited English proficient’’, ‘‘an English learn-
er’’, or a child who speaks a ‘‘language other than 
English’’. 
(6) FAMILY
LITERACY
SERVICES.—The term 
‘‘family literacy services’’ means services that— 
(A) are family literacy services, as defined 
in section 637 of the Head Start Act (42 
U.S.C. 9832); and 
(B) meet the requirements of section 641A 
of such Act (42 U.S.C. 9836a). 
(7) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘‘finan-
cial assistance’’ includes assistance provided by 
grant, agreement, or contract, for which payments 
may be made in installments and in advance or by 
way of reimbursement with necessary adjustments 
on account of overpayments or underpayments. 
(8) FULL-WORKING-DAY.—The term ‘‘full-work-
ing-day’’ means not less than 10 hours per day. 
Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to re-
quire an entity to provide services to a child who has 
not reached the age of compulsory school attendance 
for more than the number of hours per day per-
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mitted by State law (including regulation) for the 
provision of services to such a child. 
(9) HEALTH.—The term ‘‘health’’, when used 
to refer to services or care provided to children en-
rolled in a child care and early learning program, 
their parents, or their siblings, shall be interpreted 
to refer to both physical and mental health. 
(10) HOMELESS CHILD.—The term ‘‘homeless 
child’’ means an individual described in section 
725(2) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance 
Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a(2)). 
(11) INDIAN.—The term ‘‘Indian’’ means an in-
dividual who is— 
(A) a member of an Indian tribe or band, 
as membership is defined by the tribe or band, 
including— 
(i) any tribe or band terminated since 
1940; and 
(ii) any tribe or band recognized by 
the State in which the tribe or band re-
sides; 
(B) a descendant of an individual de-
scribed in subparagraph (A); 
(C) considered by the Secretary of the In-
terior to be an Indian for any purpose; 
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(D) an Eskimo, Aleut, or other Alaska Na-
tive; or 
(E) a member of an organized Indian 
group that received a grant under the Indian 
Education Act of 1988 as in effect on October 
19, 1994. 
(12) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 
means an Indian tribe, within the meaning of part 
A of title VI of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.). 
(13) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 
The term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 
meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 
(14) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 
‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given 
such term in section 8101 of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(15) LOCALITY.—The term ‘‘locality’’ means 
any city, municipality, county, or other political sub-
division of a State having general governmental pow-
ers, or any combination of such political subdivi-
sions. 
(16) LOW-INCOME.—The term ‘‘low-income’’, 
used with respect to a child or other individual, 
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means an individual in a family with a family in-
come that is not more than 200 percent of the pov-
erty line. 
(17) MIGRANT OR SEASONAL CHILD CARE AND 
EARLY LEARNING PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘migrant or 
seasonal child care and early learning program’’ 
means— 
(A) with respect to services for migrant 
farmworkers, a child care and early learning 
program that serves families who are engaged 
in agricultural labor and who have changed 
their residence from one geographic location to 
another in the preceding 2-year period; and 
(B) with respect to services for seasonal 
farmworkers, a child care and early learning 
program that serves families who are engaged 
primarily in seasonal agricultural labor and who 
have not changed their residence to another ge-
ographic location in the preceding 2-year pe-
riod. 
(18) MILITARY
CHILD
CARE
PROGRAM.—The 
term ‘‘military child care program’’ means the pro-
gram carried out under subchapter II of chapter 88 
of title 10, United States Code. 
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(19) NATIVE
HAWAIIAN.—The term ‘‘Native 
Hawaiian’’ has the meaning given the term in sec-
tion 6207 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7517). 
(20) POVERTY LINE.—The term ‘‘poverty line’’ 
means the official poverty line (as defined by the Of-
fice of Management and Budget) based on the most 
recent data available from the Bureau of the Cen-
sus— 
(A) adjusted to reflect the percentage 
change in the Consumer Price Index For All 
Urban Consumers, issued by the Bureau of 
Labor Statistics, during the annual or other in-
terval immediately preceding the date on which 
such adjustment is made; and 
(B) adjusted for family size. 
(21) 
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT.—The 
term ‘‘professional development’’ means the career- 
pathway aligned mechanisms that contribute to en-
suring that a member of the early care and edu-
cation workforce, in any setting, has or is working 
towards obtaining the degrees and other credentials 
needed to demonstrate the necessary knowledge and 
competencies for quality provision of child care and 
early learning services. 
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(22) SCIENTIFICALLY VALID RESEARCH.—The 
term ‘‘scientifically valid research’’ includes applied 
research, basic research, and field-initiated research, 
in which the rationale, design, and interpretation are 
soundly developed in accordance with principles of 
scientific research. 
(23) 
SECRETARY.—The 
term 
‘‘Secretary’’ 
means the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 
(24) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 
(A) a State, as defined in section 637 of 
the Head Start Act; and 
(B) the Republic of Palau— 
(i) for each of fiscal years 2022 
through 2026; and 
(ii) (if legislation approving a new 
agreement regarding United States assist-
ance for the Republic of Palau has not 
been enacted by September 30, 2024), for 
each subsequent fiscal year for which such 
legislation has not been enacted. 
(25) TRIBAL LAND.—The term ‘‘tribal land’’ 
means a reservation, the land of an Indian tribe, or 
land designated by Hawaii as under the control of 
Native Hawaiians for purposes of this title. 
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(26) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘tribal 
organization’’ means— 
(A) the recognized governing body of any 
Indian tribe, and any legally established organi-
zation of Indians which is controlled, sanc-
tioned, or chartered by such governing body or 
which is democratically elected by the adult 
members of the Indian community to be served 
by such organization and which includes the 
maximum participation of Indians in all phases 
of its activities, except that in any case where 
a contract is let or grant made to an organiza-
tion to perform services benefitting more than 
one Indian tribe, the approval of each such In-
dian tribe shall be a prerequisite to the letting 
or making of such contract or grant; and 
(B) includes a Native Hawaiian organiza-
tion, as defined in section 6207 of the Elemen-
tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 7517) and a private nonprofit organiza-
tion established for the purpose of serving 
youth who are Indians or Native Hawaiians. 
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SEC. 103. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; APPRO-
PRIATIONS. 
(a) APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to be 
appropriated and there are appropriated to carry out this 
title (other than the activities described in subsection (b)), 
including meeting the entitlement requirements of section 
111(b), such sums as may be necessary. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out activities under 
sections 135, 136, 137, 138, 151, 152, and such adminis-
trative activities as the Secretary determines to be nec-
essary 
and 
appropriate 
to 
carry 
out 
this 
title, 
$500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2032. 
Subtitle A—Prime Sponsors and 
Providers 
SEC. 111. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR CHILD CARE AND 
EARLY LEARNING PROGRAMS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall provide finan-
cial assistance for carrying out child care and early learn-
ing programs under this title to prime sponsors, to provide 
family-centered services to children to promote their devel-
opment and learning, pursuant to plans and applications 
approved in accordance with the provisions of this title. 
(b) ENTITLEMENT.—Each covered child shall be enti-
tled to participate in a child care and early learning pro-
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gram that meets the requirements of this title. The entitle-
ment shall not be a capped entitlement. 
SEC. 112. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS; PAYMENTS. 
(a) ALLOCATION
TO ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary 
shall allocate the amounts appropriated for carrying out 
this title for any fiscal year after fiscal year 2021, in the 
following manner: 
(1) CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PRO-
GRAMS.—The amount made available under section 
103(a) shall be used for the purpose of providing fi-
nancial assistance to carry out child care and early 
learning programs under this title for covered chil-
dren, other than activities described in paragraph 
(2). 
(2) ADMINISTRATIVE AND ENHANCEMENT AC-
TIVITIES.—Of the amounts appropriated under sec-
tion 103(b)— 
(A) such portion, but not less than 50 per-
cent, shall be used for the purpose of carrying 
out activities under sections 135 and 136 and 
such administrative activities as the Secretary 
determines to be necessary and appropriate to 
carry out this title; 
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(B) such portion, but not less than 20 per-
cent, shall be used for the purpose of carrying 
out activities under section 151; and 
(C) the remainder of such amounts shall 
be used for the purpose of carrying out activi-
ties under sections 137, 138, and 152. 
(3) FLEXIBILITY
FOR
EMERGENCY
SUPPLE-
MENTAL
FUNDING.—Notwithstanding 
paragraph 
(2), the Secretary may, after providing appropriate 
notice and written justification to Congress, redirect 
any amounts appropriated under section 103(b) as 
the Secretary determines to be necessary and appro-
priate to carry out section 151 for the purpose of 
carrying out activities under section 151. 
(b) PUBLICATION.—As soon as practicable after 
funds are appropriated under section 103(b) for any fiscal 
year, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register 
the amounts made available for that fiscal year to carry 
out each of the activities described in subsection (a)(2). 
(c) PAYMENTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.— 
(A) AUTHORITY FOR PAYMENTS.—In ac-
cordance with this subsection, the Secretary 
shall pay, from the allocation under subsection 
(a)(1), the Federal share of the costs of pro-
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viding child care and early learning programs, 
in accordance with plans under sections 113 
and 114 that have been approved as provided in 
this title. 
(B) MANNER
AND
TIMING
FOR
PAY-
MENTS.—The Secretary may make such finan-
cial assistance as may be necessary to carry out 
this title. The Secretary may also withhold 
funds otherwise payable under this title in order 
to recover any amounts expended in the current 
or immediately prior fiscal year in violation of 
any provision of this title or any term or condi-
tion of financial assistance under this title. 
(2) FEDERAL SHARE.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 
subparagraphs (B) through (E) and section 
151, the Federal share of the costs of providing 
child care and early learning programs for cov-
ered children shall be not more than 80 per-
cent. 
(B) LOW-INCOME
CHILDREN.—The Fed-
eral share shall be 80 percent of the costs of 
providing child care and early learning pro-
grams for low-income covered children. 
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(C) CHILDREN
WHO
ARE
NOT
LOW-IN-
COME.—The Federal share shall be 50 percent 
of the costs of providing child care and early 
learning programs for covered children who are 
not low-income children. 
(D) CHILDREN
OF
MIGRANT
AND
SEA-
SONAL
FARMWORKERS.—The Secretary shall 
pay for 100 percent of the costs of providing 
child care and early learning programs for cov-
ered children of migrant and seasonal farm-
workers under this title. 
(E) NATIVE
AMERICAN
CHILDREN.—The 
Secretary shall pay each prime sponsor des-
ignated under section 113 for 100 percent of 
the costs of providing child care and early 
learning programs for covered children in In-
dian tribes and Native Hawaiian covered chil-
dren under this title. 
(F) 
ADMINISTRATIVE
AMOUNT.—When 
making a payment described in paragraph (1) 
to any prime sponsor for the Federal share of 
the costs of providing a child care and early 
learning program, the Secretary shall also make 
a payment to the prime sponsor of not more 
than 100 percent of the costs for staff and 
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other administrative expenses of the prime 
sponsor, including such costs and expenses re-
lated to quality improvement (such as con-
ducting monitoring and training) and operating 
the Child Care and Early Learning Council, but 
not to exceed an amount which is reasonable 
when compared with such costs and expenses 
for other prime sponsors. 
(3) RATE ANALYSIS.— 
(A) PROCESS.—The Secretary shall, on the 
basis of recommendations by an committee of 
experts outside the Department of Health and 
Human Services, establish and implement a 
process for determining the costs described in 
paragraph (1)(A) and ensuring that the re-
quirement of subparagraph (B) is met. 
(B) 
SUFFICIENCY
REQUIREMENT.—The 
Secretary shall ensure that the Federal share 
determined under paragraph (2) is sufficient to 
ensure that a prime sponsor can meet all re-
quirements under this title, including the na-
tional program standards under section 121, 
compensation provisions under section 136(b), 
and provisions relating to comprehensive serv-
ices and access to services. 
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(4) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.— 
(A) SOURCES.—The non-Federal share of 
the costs described in paragraph (1) may be 
provided through public or private funds (in-
cluding labor union or employer contributions) 
and may be in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, 
including facilities, goods, or services. 
(B) FEES FROM FAMILIES.—Fees collected 
for services provided pursuant to section 114(j) 
may be used toward the non-Federal share. 
Such fees collected from a family may not ex-
ceed 7 percent of the family income, regardless 
of the number of children served from that fam-
ily. 
(C) EXCESS CONTRIBUTIONS.—If, with re-
spect to any fiscal year, a prime sponsor pro-
vides a non-Federal share, for any program 
that exceeds its requirements for such a share, 
such excess may be applied toward meeting the 
requirements for such a share for the subse-
quent fiscal year under this title. 
(d) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—No State or locality 
shall reduce its expenditures for child care and early learn-
ing programs (including home-based child care and early 
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learning programs) because of financial assistance pro-
vided under this title. 
SEC. 113. DESIGNATION OF PRIME SPONSORS. 
(a) AUTHORITY TO DESIGNATE.— 
(1) QUALIFIED ENTITIES.—In accordance with 
the provisions of this section, a State, locality, In-
dian tribe, tribal organization, or public or private 
nonprofit agency or organization, meeting the re-
quirements of this title may be designated by the 
Secretary as a prime sponsor for the purpose of en-
tering into arrangements to carry out child care and 
early learning programs under this title. 
(2) PRIME
SPONSORSHIP
PLANS.—An entity 
may be designated by the Secretary as a prime spon-
sor for a period of fiscal years only pursuant to an 
application in the form of a prime sponsorship plan 
which was submitted by such entity and approved by 
the Secretary in accordance with the provisions of 
this title. At a minimum, the plan shall— 
(A) describe the service area to be served 
and how the program will be delivered; 
(B) provide a comprehensive child care and 
early learning plan, as described in section 
114(b); and 
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(C) demonstrate that the entity has the 
authority under its charter or applicable law to 
receive and administer funds under this title, 
funds and contributions from private or public 
sources that may be used in support of a child 
care and early learning program, and funds 
under a Federal or State assistance program 
that may be so used. 
(3) APPROVAL.—No prime sponsorship plan, or 
modification of the plan, submitted by an entity 
under this section shall be approved by the Secretary 
unless the Secretary determines, in accordance with 
regulations which the Secretary shall prescribe, 
that— 
(A) the local educational agency for the 
service area and other appropriate educational 
and training agencies and institutions have had 
an opportunity to submit comments to the enti-
ty and to the Secretary; 
(B) appropriate officials from Indian tribes 
or tribal organizations have had an opportunity 
to submit comments to the entity and to the 
Secretary; and 
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(C) the Governor of the State has had an 
opportunity to submit comments to the entity 
and to the Secretary. 
(4) JOINT SUBMISSION.—In order to contribute 
to the effective administration of this title, the Sec-
retary shall establish appropriate procedures to per-
mit an entity described in subsection (a)(1) and a 
State to submit jointly a single comprehensive child 
care and early learning plan for the service areas the 
entity and State propose. If the Secretary approves 
such a plan, the Secretary may designate the entity 
as a prime sponsor, and the State as a prime spon-
sor, for the corresponding service areas. 
(b) ADDITIONAL APPROVAL PROCEDURES.— 
(1) LOCALITY
OVER
POPULATION
THRESH-
OLD.—The Secretary shall approve a prime sponsor-
ship plan submitted by a locality if— 
(A) the locality meets a population thresh-
old determined by the Secretary, except that 
the Secretary may waive the population thresh-
old if it creates a barrier to providing child care 
and early learning services in a service area of 
a specified type, such as a rural region; 
(B) the plan meets the requirements of 
subsection (a) and includes adequate provisions 
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for carrying out child care and early learning 
programs in the area of such locality; and 
(C) the locality is a— 
(i) city; 
(ii) county; or 
(iii) other unit of general local govern-
ment, including a local educational agency, 
as defined in section 8101 of the Elemen-
tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 7801). 
(2) LOCALITIES WITH COMMON GEOGRAPHICAL 
AREA.—In the event that the area under the juris-
diction of a unit of general local government de-
scribed in clause (i), (ii), (iii), or (iv) of paragraph 
(1)(C) includes any common geographical area with 
the geographical area covered by another such unit 
of general local government, the Secretary shall des-
ignate to serve such common area the unit of gen-
eral local government that— 
(A) the Secretary determines has the capa-
bility of more effectively carrying out the pur-
poses of this title with respect to such area; and 
(B) has submitted a plan which meets the 
requirements of subsection (a) and includes 
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adequate provisions for carrying out child care 
and early learning programs in such area. 
(3) LOCALITIES.— 
(A) SUBMISSION
BY
COMBINATION.—In 
the event that the Secretary determines that a 
locality does not meet the requirements for des-
ignation as a prime sponsor under this section, 
the Secretary shall take steps to encourage the 
submission of a prime sponsorship plan, cov-
ering the area of such locality, by a combination 
of localities which are adjoining and possess a 
sufficient commonality of interest. 
(B) APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall ap-
prove a prime sponsorship plan submitted by 
such a combination of localities, if the Secretary 
determines that the plan so submitted meets 
the requirements of subsection (a) and includes 
adequate provisions for carrying out child care 
and early learning programs in the area covered 
by the combination of such localities. 
(4) INDIAN
TRIBES
AND
TRIBAL
ORGANIZA-
TIONS.—The Secretary shall approve a prime spon-
sorship plan submitted by an Indian tribe or tribal 
organization if the Secretary determines that the 
plan so submitted meets the requirements of sub-
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section (a) and includes adequate provisions for car-
rying out child care and early learning programs in 
the area to be served. 
(5) STATES.—The Secretary shall approve a 
prime sponsorship plan submitted by a State if the 
Secretary determines that the plan so submitted— 
(A) meets the requirements of subsection 
(a); 
(B) includes adequate provisions for car-
rying out child care and early learning pro-
grams in the area to be served; 
(C) contains a commitment to coordinating 
the State’s early childhood programs to create 
a cohesive system, for children from birth to 
entry into kindergarten, for providing child care 
and early learning services; 
(D) demonstrates that the State can de-
liver a child care and early learning program 
that ensures coverage of— 
(i) the entire State; or 
(ii) the portions of the State that are 
not proposed to be covered by other enti-
ties submitting applications under sub-
section (a)(2); and 
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(E) demonstrates that the State can de-
liver such a program with sufficient local ad-
ministration, governance, and input. 
(6) TWO PHASES OF APPLICATION REVIEW.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish two phases of review for applications in 
the form of prime sponsorship plans. Entities 
submitting such applications for the first phase 
of review shall be given preference for designa-
tion under subsection (a). 
(B) FIRST PHASE.—States, Indian tribes, 
tribal organizations, entities applying to carry 
out migrant or seasonal child care and early 
learning programs, and entities and States sub-
mitting applications jointly may submit applica-
tions described in subparagraph (A) for the 
first phase of application review. 
(C) SECOND PHASE.—Localities, public or 
private nonprofit agencies or organizations, and 
entities described in subparagraph (B) may 
submit applications described in subparagraph 
(A) for the second phase of application review. 
(c) DISAPPROVAL; WITHDRAWAL OF APPROVAL.—A 
prime sponsorship plan submitted under this section may 
be disapproved or a prior designation of a prime sponsor 
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may be withdrawn only if the Secretary, in accordance 
with regulations which the Secretary shall prescribe, has 
provided— 
(1) written notice of intention to disapprove 
such plan or withdraw such designation, including a 
statement of the reasons; 
(2) a reasonable time in which to submit correc-
tive amendments to such plan or undertake other 
necessary corrective action; and 
(3) an opportunity for a public hearing upon 
which basis an appeal to the Secretary may be taken 
as of right. 
(d) UNSERVED AREAS.—In the event that a prime 
sponsorship plan has not been submitted or approved, if 
a prime sponsor designation has been withdrawn, or if the 
needs of seasonal and migrant farmworkers, minority 
groups, or low-income individuals are not being met, for 
a service area, the Secretary may enter into an agreement 
with an organization, such as a national nonprofit organi-
zation, to serve as the prime sponsor for such an area. 
The Secretary shall meet the requirements described in 
subsection (g) before entering into the agreement. 
(e) DESIGNATION RENEWAL.— 
(1) DESIGNATION RENEWAL.—A prime sponsor 
shall obtain renewal of the designation of the prime 
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sponsor not more frequently than every 3 years and 
not less frequently than every 5 years. 
(2) SYSTEM
FOR
DESIGNATION
RENEWAL.— 
The Secretary shall develop a system for prime 
sponsors to renew their designation, under which the 
Secretary shall determine if a prime sponsor is deliv-
ering a high-quality and comprehensive child care 
and early learning program that meets the health, 
educational, nutritional, and social needs of the chil-
dren and families it serves, and meets program and 
financial management requirements and standards 
described in section 121(a), and governance and 
legal requirements. 
(f) PROHIBITION AGAINST ENTITIES OTHER THAN 
INDIAN TRIBES OR TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS RECEIVING 
A GRANT FOR A CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PRO-
GRAM ON INDIAN LAND.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, except as provided in paragraph 
(2), under no condition may an entity other than an 
Indian tribe or tribal organization receive a grant to 
carry out a child care and early learning program on 
tribal land. 
(2) EXCEPTIONS.— 
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(A) NO INDIAN TRIBE OR TRIBAL ORGANI-
ZATION AVAILABLE.—In a service area in which 
there is no Indian tribe or tribal organization 
available for designation to carry out an child 
care and early learning program on Indian 
land, an entity that is not a tribal organization 
may receive a grant to carry out an child care 
and early learning program on Indian land, but 
only until such time as an Indian tribe or tribal 
organization in such service area becomes avail-
able and is designated pursuant to this section. 
(B) JOINT PRIME SPONSORS.—For a serv-
ice area that consists of any non-reservation In-
dian land, if the Indian tribe or tribal organiza-
tion involved is not interested in serving or does 
not have the capacity to serve the entire service 
area, the Indian tribe or tribal organization 
may work with another prime sponsor to jointly 
serve as prime sponsors for the service area. 
(g) FAMILY, CHILD CARE WORKER, AND COMMU-
NITY PARTICIPATION.—The Secretary shall— 
(1) significantly involve parents, family mem-
bers, family child care home providers, child care 
and early learning staff, labor unions, and commu-
nity residents in the service area for the program in-
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volved, in the process for designation of prime spon-
sors; and 
(2) ensure that the persons selected to be in-
volved in that process shall reflect the diversity of 
the service area, with respect to income, culture, 
race and ethnicity, language, and status as a mi-
grant or seasonal farmworker, Indian, or Native Ha-
waiian. 
SEC. 114. POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF PRIME SPONSORS. 
(a) AUTHORITY.—If an entity has been designated as 
a prime sponsor under this title— 
(1) the entity may receive and administer funds 
under this title, funds and contributions from pri-
vate or local public sources that may be used in sup-
port of a child care and early learning program, and 
funds under a Federal or State assistance program 
related to the provision of child care and early learn-
ing services; 
(2) the entity may transfer funds so received, 
and delegate powers to other agencies, subject to the 
powers of its governing board and its overall pro-
gram responsibilities; 
(3) the entity’s power to transfer funds and del-
egate powers shall include the power to make trans-
fers and delegations for services in all cases where 
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the transfers and delegations will contribute to effi-
ciency and effectiveness or otherwise further pro-
gram objectives; and 
(4) the entity may set up a process to negotiate 
wages, benefits, hours, and working conditions of 
teachers and other staff in the corresponding child 
care and early learning program. 
(b) COMPREHENSIVE
CHILD
CARE
AND
EARLY 
LEARNING PLANS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Financial assistance under 
this title may be provided by the Secretary to an en-
tity that is a prime sponsor designated pursuant to 
section 113 only pursuant to an application in the 
form of a comprehensive child care and early learn-
ing plan which was submitted annually by such enti-
ty and approved by the Secretary in accordance with 
the provisions of this title. 
(2) CONTENTS.—Any such plan shall set forth 
a comprehensive proposal, for providing child care 
and early learning services in the service area, 
which— 
(A) assesses all child care and early learn-
ing needs and goals within the area and the ap-
plicant’s proposal for addressing those needs; 
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(B) describes the demographic and eco-
nomic data and other criteria the prime sponsor 
proposes to use to determine whether a commu-
nity is in particular need of child care; 
(C) identifies specific communities deter-
mined to be in particular need of child care, 
where such communities are located, the size 
and scope of such areas, and the age groups of 
children in need of child care in such areas; 
(D) describes how the prime sponsor will 
increase the child care supply, quality, and af-
fordability for all families in communities of 
particular need, which may include providing 
start-up funding, technical assistance, training 
and professional development for the child care 
workforce, enhanced compensation, and other 
activities; 
(E) describes how the prime sponsor will 
provide comprehensive health, mental health, 
education, parental or family member involve-
ment, nutritional, social, and other services for 
the children that need child care and early 
learning services, including appropriate screen-
ing and referrals for children with challenging 
behaviors and other mental health needs; 
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(F) provides that services are full-working- 
day and full calendar year long, and ensures 
that the available hours of services are respon-
sive to the needs of families in the service area, 
including, as appropriate, nonstandard hour 
care; 
(G) describes how the prime sponsor will 
guarantee all children in the service area access 
to the child care and early learning program 
and use funds provided under section 112(a)(1) 
for child care and early learning services; 
(H) describes how the prime sponsor will 
promote children’s mental health, social and 
emotional well-being, and overall health, by pro-
viding supports for positive learning environ-
ments for the children, including— 
(i) strategies for supporting children 
with challenging behaviors and other so-
cial, emotional, and mental health con-
cerns; and 
(ii) teacher training and mental health 
consultations for both staff and children of 
the child care and early learning program; 
(I) includes a policy on suspension and ex-
pulsion that— 
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(i) prohibits or severely limits the use 
of suspension due to a child’s behavior and 
ensures suspensions are only temporary in 
nature; 
(ii) prohibits expelling or unenrolling 
a child from the program because of the 
child’s behavior; and 
(iii) provides that, in the case of a 
child exhibiting persistent and serious chal-
lenging behaviors, the program provider 
will— 
(I) explore all possible steps and 
document all steps taken to address 
such behaviors; 
(II) make efforts to facilitate the 
child’s safe participation in the pro-
gram; and 
(III) after taking the steps de-
scribed in subclauses (I) and (II), if 
the provider determines, in consulta-
tion with parents and other profes-
sionals, that the program is not the 
most appropriate placement for the 
child, work with the parents to di-
rectly facilitate the transition of the 
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child to a more appropriate place-
ment; 
(J) provides that funds received under sec-
tion 112(a)(1) will be used for a child care and 
early learning program for covered children; 
(K) describes how, in the case of a prime 
sponsor located within or adjacent to a metro-
politan area, the prime sponsor will coordinate 
activities with other prime sponsors located 
within such metropolitan area; 
(L) provides that, to the extent feasible, 
the child care and early learning program will 
include children from a range of socioeconomic 
backgrounds, and that children will have access 
to all child care and early learning service pro-
viders in the service area, with priority given to 
the provider preferences stated by the parents 
and family members of low-income children; 
(M) ensures that, where socioeconomic di-
versity of children among providers in the serv-
ice area cannot be achieved, the share of pro-
gram costs not covered through the Federal 
share or program fees does not fall on a single 
provider or a subset of providers within the 
service area; 
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(N) provides that services will be cul-
turally, linguistically, and developmentally ap-
propriate; 
(O) provides that services will take into ac-
count the unique needs of communities, fami-
lies, and children in the service area, including 
low-income children, children with incarcerated 
parents, homeless children, and children who 
are dual language learners; 
(P) describes a system for offering child 
care and early learning options, for facilitating 
the selection of such an option, and for enroll-
ment of children, which may include estab-
lishing and operating a website for families; 
(Q) describes how the prime sponsor will 
conduct outreach to all families in the service 
area and referrals, using the appropriate me-
dium for families who speak a language other 
than English; 
(R) provides equitably for the child care 
and early learning needs of all covered children 
within the service area, and promotes equity 
and addresses disparities in the provision of 
services, including equity and disparities related 
to income, culture, race and ethnicity, language, 
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or status as a child of a migrant or seasonal 
farmworker, as a child belonging to an Indian 
tribe, or as a Native Hawaiian child; 
(S) provides, insofar as possible, for co-
ordination of the child care and early learning 
program with other social programs; 
(T) provides for— 
(i) direct participation of parents, 
family members, and child care and early 
learning program staff, including teachers 
and paraprofessionals, in the conduct of 
overall direction of, decision-making for, 
and evaluation of the child care and early 
learning program; and 
(ii) sufficient support for the persons 
described in clause (i) to participate in the 
activities described in clause (i); 
(U) provides to the extent feasible for the 
employment as both professionals and para-
professionals of residents in the service area in 
a way that takes into account the cultural, ra-
cial and ethnic, and linguistic diversity of the 
families served; 
(V) includes to the extent feasible a career 
development plan for paraprofessional and pro-
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fessional training, education, and advancement 
on a career ladder; 
(W) provides that, insofar as possible, per-
sons residing in the service area will receive 
jobs, including in-home and part-time jobs, and 
opportunities for training in programs under 
sections 135 and 136, with special consideration 
for career opportunities for low-income individ-
uals; 
(X) provides for the regular and frequent 
dissemination of information in the language of 
those to be served, to assure that parents, fam-
ily members, and interested persons in the serv-
ice area are fully informed of services available 
through the child care and early learning pro-
gram, and of the activities of the prime spon-
sor’s Child Care and Early Learning Council; 
(Y) provides for coordination with adminis-
trators of programs and services that are re-
lated to child care and early learning programs 
and services and that are not funded through 
this title, including programs conducted under 
the auspices of or with the support of business 
or financial institutions or organizations, indus-
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try, labor unions, employee or labor-manage-
ment organizations, or other community groups; 
(Z) as applicable, describes any arrange-
ments for the delegation, under the supervision 
of the Child Care and Early Learning Council, 
to public or private agencies or organizations, 
of responsibilities for the delivery of child care 
and early learning services for which financial 
assistance is provided under this title or for 
planning or evaluation services to be made 
available with respect to a child care and early 
learning program under this title; 
(AA) contains plans for regularly con-
ducting surveys and analyses of needs for the 
child care and early learning program in the 
service area and for submitting to the Secretary 
a comprehensive annual report and evaluation 
in such form and containing such information 
as the Secretary shall require by regulation; 
(BB) provides that— 
(i) services for children with disabil-
ities at the State, tribal, and local levels 
will be available, in the child care and early 
learning program approved under the plan; 
and 
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(ii) formal linkages are in place be-
tween the program and providers of early 
intervention services for infants and tod-
dlers with disabilities; 
(CC) provides assurances satisfactory to 
the Secretary that the non-Federal share re-
quirements described in section 112(c) will be 
met; 
(DD) provides for such fiscal control, fiscal 
staffing, and funding accounting procedures as 
the Secretary may prescribe to assure proper 
disbursement of and accounting for Federal 
funds paid to the prime sponsor; 
(EE) provides that the child care and early 
learning program, or services within the pro-
gram, under this title shall be provided only for 
children whose parents or legal guardians have 
requested the services; 
(FF) sets forth satisfactory provisions for 
establishing, consistent with subsection (d)(1), 
and maintaining a Child Care and Early Learn-
ing Council which meets the requirements of 
subsection (d); 
(GG) provides verification that the sponsor 
and its delegate providers— 
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(i) will recognize and bargain with 
labor unions representing family child care 
home providers, teachers and other staff of 
child care and early learning programs in 
order to meet the requirements set forth in 
section 136 and for other purposes; and 
(ii) will not assist in, promote, or 
deter labor union organizing; 
(HH) provides an annual technical assist-
ance and training plan; 
(II) provides for collection and reporting of 
program performance data in both an aggregate 
form and disaggregated by family income, cul-
ture, race and ethnicity, and primary language; 
(JJ) documents a written affirmation, 
signed by the appropriate officials from Indian 
tribes or tribal organizations approved by the 
tribes or Native Hawaiian groups, which recog-
nizes that the prime sponsor has engaged in 
timely and meaningful consultation with the ap-
propriate officials from Indian tribes or tribal 
organizations if— 
(i) a program is being operated on or 
near an Indian reservation, or if more than 
15 percent of children enrolled in the pro-
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gram are Indians or Native Hawaiians; 
and 
(ii) the prime sponsor is not an Indian 
tribe or tribal organization; 
(KK) provides that services will be pro-
vided with a holistic and multi-generational ap-
proach that includes promoting the well-being 
of pregnant women and engaging expectant 
parents during prenatal and early months; 
(LL) describes how the sponsor will ensure 
that key workplace protections and rights, simi-
lar to the protections and rights specified in the 
National Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 
et seq.), are provided; 
(MM) describes how the sponsor will im-
plement a process in which, through their labor 
unions, family child care home providers and 
child care and early learning center staff par-
ticipate in a collective process to set wages, ben-
efits, hours, and minimum standards for work-
ing conditions; 
(NN) describes how the sponsor will ensure 
that family child care home providers, including 
teachers and other staff of family child care 
home providers, and teachers and other staff at 
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a child care and early learning center (including 
employees of a delegate provider) are paid com-
pensation that meets the requirements of sec-
tion 136(b); 
(OO) provides that the sponsor will provide 
teachers and other staff with supports that are 
high-quality, research-based, and rooted in 
adult learning theory; 
(PP) provides that the program will be ac-
cessible to, and that staff will receive training 
on working with, children with disabilities and 
parents with disabilities; and 
(QQ) meets any other requirements or pro-
vides any information the Secretary requires by 
regulation. 
(c) USES.—The Secretary shall provide the financial 
assistance to a prime sponsor, for the planning, conduct, 
administration, and evaluation of a child care and early 
learning program that delivers services in accordance with 
the requirements of the comprehensive child care and early 
learning plan specified under subsection (b), and for im-
plementing the following activities: 
(1)(A) Provide for family member and commu-
nity involvement, including the involvement of par-
ents, family members, community residents, current 
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or future staff of a child care and early learning pro-
gram, and local businesses, in the design and imple-
mentation of the program. 
(B) The prime sponsor shall— 
(i) provide for the involvement in a manner 
that recognizes parents and family members as 
their children’s primary teachers and nurturers; 
and 
(ii) implement intentional strategies to en-
gage parents and family members in their chil-
dren’s learning and development and support 
parent-child relationships. 
(2) Provide for implementing additional activi-
ties, other than the activities described in paragraph 
(1), that the Secretary determines to be appropriate 
by regulation, which additional activities may in-
clude— 
(A) activities to support family well-being 
related to family safety, health, and economic 
stability, including substance abuse counseling 
(either directly or through referral to local enti-
ties), which may include providing information 
on the effect of prenatal exposure to drugs and 
alcohol; and 
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(B) other activities designed to facilitate a 
partnership in the program with parents in sup-
porting the development and early learning of 
their child, including providing— 
(i) training in basic child care and 
early learning (including cognitive, social, 
and emotional development); 
(ii) assistance in developing adult or 
family literacy and communication skills; 
(iii) opportunities to share experiences 
with other parents (including parent-men-
tor relationships); 
(iv) health services, including informa-
tion on maternal depression and mental 
health; 
(v) regular in-home or virtual visita-
tion; or 
(vi) family literacy services. 
(3) Provide, with respect to each participating 
family, a family needs assessment that includes con-
sultation with the parents (including, in this para-
graph, foster parents, grandparents, and kinship 
caregivers, where applicable) in the family’s pre-
ferred language or through an interpreter, to the ex-
tent practicable, and ensure parents have the oppor-
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tunity to share personal information in an environ-
ment in which the parents feel safe. 
(4) Provide to parents of dual language learners 
outreach and information, in an understandable and 
uniform format and, to the extent practicable, in a 
language that the parents can understand. 
(5) Promote the continued partnership in the 
program of the parents (including, in this para-
graph, foster parents, grandparents, and kinship 
caregivers, as appropriate) of children that partici-
pate in child care and early learning programs in the 
education of their children upon transition of their 
children to school, by working with the local edu-
cational agency— 
(A) to implement strategies and activities, 
including providing information and training to 
the parents— 
(i) to help parents advocate for and 
promote successful transitions to kinder-
garten for their children, including helping 
parents continue to be involved in the edu-
cation and development of their child, and 
to help parents understand and prepare to 
exercise their rights and responsibilities 
concerning the education of their children; 
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(ii) in the case of parents with chil-
dren who receive services under section 
619 or part C of the Individuals with Dis-
abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 
1431 et seq.), to collaborate with the par-
ents, and the local agency responsible for 
providing such services, to support the 
children and parents in transitioning to a 
new setting in elementary school; and 
(iii) to prepare parents— 
(I) to understand and work with 
schools in order to communicate with 
teachers and other school personnel; 
(II) to continue to support their 
children’s learning, in an elementary 
school setting; and 
(III) to participate as appro-
priate in decisions relating to the edu-
cation of their children and advocate 
for their children’s needs; and 
(B) to advocate for the local educational 
agency to ensure that schools have a process in 
place to take other actions, as appropriate and 
feasible, to support the active involvement of 
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the parents with schools, school personnel, and 
school-related organizations. 
(6) Establish effective procedures for timely re-
ferral of children with disabilities to the State or 
local agency providing services under section 619 or 
part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 
Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et seq.), and collabora-
tion with that agency. 
(7) Establish effective procedures— 
(A) for providing necessary early interven-
tion services and special education and related 
services to children with developmental delays 
and disabilities prior to an eligibility determina-
tion by the State or local agency responsible for 
providing services under section 619 or part C 
of such Act; and 
(B) in the case of a child for whom an 
evaluation determines that the child is not eligi-
ble for early intervention services or special 
education and related services under the Indi-
viduals with Disabilities Education Act (20 
U.S.C. 1400), but who has a documented sig-
nificant delay, for partnering with parents to 
help the parents access services and supports to 
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help address the child’s identified needs through 
health insurance or other means. 
(8) Ensure that each family with a covered 
child who requests a placement receives one in the 
service area and, in making the placement, recognize 
and take into account the family’s needs regarding 
setting (such as a family child care home or center- 
based setting), cultural and linguistic preferences, 
operating schedule, and preferences on location. 
(9) Provide both center-based and family child 
care home options for child care and early learning 
services to families. 
(d) PROGRAM GOVERNANCE.— 
(1) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—Upon receiving des-
ignation as a prime sponsor, the prime sponsor shall 
establish a Child Care and Early Learning Advisory 
Council (referred to in this section as a ‘‘Council’’ 
and maintain the Council to advise the prime spon-
sor and assist in the coordination of program serv-
ices and implementation. 
(2) STATE
COUNCIL.—In the event that the 
prime sponsor is a State, the Council shall coordi-
nate activities with the State Advisory Council on 
Early Childhood Education and Care designated or 
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established under section 642B(b) in the Head Start 
Act (42 U.S.C. 9837b(b)). 
(3) OVERALL COMPOSITION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall es-
tablish the composition requirements for the 
Council ensuring that the Council has represen-
tation of— 
(i) parents or family members of chil-
dren served by child care and early learn-
ing programs; 
(ii) staff and providers of child care 
and early learning programs, or their rep-
resentatives; and 
(iii) other relevant stakeholders. 
(B) REPRESENTATION.—Members of the 
Council shall reflect the population served by 
the prime sponsor, with respect to income, cul-
ture, race and ethnicity, language, and status 
as a migrant or seasonal farmworker, Indian, or 
Native Hawaiian. 
(4) CHAIRPERSON.—Each Council shall select 
its own chairperson, from among the members of the 
Council. 
(5) CONFLICT OF INTEREST.— 
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(A) IN GENERAL.—Members of the Council 
shall— 
(i) not have a financial conflict of in-
terest with the prime sponsor; 
(ii) not receive compensation for serv-
ing on the Council or for providing services 
to the prime sponsor; 
(iii) not be employed, nor shall mem-
bers of their immediate family be em-
ployed, by a prime sponsor in the service 
area; and 
(iv) as a Council, operate as an entity 
independent of staff employed by the prime 
sponsor. 
(B) EXCEPTION.—If an individual holds a 
position as a result of public election or political 
appointment, and such position carries with it 
a concurrent appointment to serve as a member 
of a Council, and such individual has any con-
flict of interest described in clause (ii) or (iii) 
of subparagraph (A)— 
(i) such individual shall not be prohib-
ited from serving on such body and the 
Council shall report such conflict to the 
Secretary; and 
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(ii) if the position held as a result of 
public election or political appointment 
provides compensation, such individual 
shall not be prohibited from receiving such 
compensation. 
(6) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Council shall pro-
vide regular advice and guidance to the prime spon-
sor on the basic goals, policies, actions, and proce-
dures, at a basic level, for the prime sponsor relating 
to the child care and early learning program in-
volved, including policies with respect to planning, 
general supervision and oversight, overall coordina-
tion, personnel, budgeting, funding, and monitoring 
and evaluation, of the programs. 
(e) PROGRAM GOVERNANCE ADMINISTRATION.— 
(1) IMPASSE
POLICIES.—The Secretary shall 
develop policies, procedures, and guidance for prime 
sponsors concerning the resolution of internal dis-
putes, including any impasse in the governance of 
child care and early learning programs. 
(2) CONDUCT
OF
RESPONSIBILITIES.—Each 
prime sponsor shall ensure the sharing of accurate 
and regular information for use by the Council, 
about program planning, policies, and operations. 
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(3) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 
Appropriate training and technical assistance shall 
be provided to the members of the Council to ensure 
that the members understand the information the 
members receive and can effectively oversee and par-
ticipate in the child care and early learning program 
of the prime sponsor. 
(f) COLLABORATION AND COORDINATION.—On re-
ceiving designation as a prime sponsor, the prime sponsor 
shall ensure that the child care and early learning program 
is implemented in a way that promotes collaboration and 
coordination with public and private entities, to the max-
imum extent practicable, to improve the availability and 
quality of services to children and families, including im-
plementing each of the following activities: 
(1) Conduct outreach to schools in which chil-
dren participating in the child care and early learn-
ing program will enroll following the program, local 
educational agencies, the local business community, 
community-based organizations, faith-based organi-
zations, museums, health care providers, and librar-
ies to generate support and leverage the resources of 
the entire local community in order to improve 
school readiness. 
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(2) Coordinate activities and collaborate with 
entities (including providers) carrying out programs 
under the Child Care and Development Block Grant 
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9857 et seq.), section 106 
of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act 
(42 U.S.C. 5106a), parts B and E of title IV of the 
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq., 670 et 
seq.), subtitle B of title VII of the McKinney-Vento 
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11431 et seq.), 
section 619 and part C of the Individuals with Dis-
abilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1419, 1431 et 
seq.), or the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et 
seq.), and other entities providing early childhood 
education and development programs or services. 
(3) Take steps to coordinate activities with the 
local educational agency serving the service area in-
volved and with schools in which children partici-
pating in the child care and early learning program 
will enroll following the program, including— 
(A) collaborating on the shared use of 
transportation and facilities, in appropriate 
cases; 
(B) collaborating to reduce the duplication 
and enhance the efficiency of services while in-
creasing the program participation; and 
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(C) exchanging information on the provi-
sion of noneducational services. 
(4) If there is a public preschool program in the 
service area that is not a prime sponsor nor a partic-
ipant in the child care and early learning program, 
enter into a memorandum of understanding with the 
local entity responsible for managing the preschool 
program, not later than 1 year after the date of en-
actment of this Act, that shall— 
(A)(i) provide for a review of each of the 
activities described in clause (ii); and 
(ii) include plans to coordinate, as appro-
priate, activities regarding— 
(I) educational activities, curricular 
objectives, and instruction; 
(II) public information dissemination 
and access to programs for families con-
tacting the child care and early learning 
program or the preschool program; 
(III) selection priorities for eligible 
children to be served by the child care and 
early learning program or any of the pre-
school programs; 
(IV) service areas; 
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(V) staff training, including opportu-
nities for joint staff training on topics such 
as academic content standards, instruc-
tional methods, curricula, and social and 
emotional development; 
(VI) program technical assistance; 
(VII) provision of additional services 
to meet the needs of parents or family 
members, as applicable; 
(VIII) communications and outreach 
to parents and family members for smooth 
transitions to kindergarten as required in 
paragraphs (3) and (6) of section 122(a); 
(IX) provision and use of facilities, 
transportation, and other program ele-
ments; and 
(X) other elements mutually agreed to 
by the parties to such memorandum; 
(B) be submitted to the Secretary and the 
State Director of Child Care and Early Learn-
ing Program Collaboration not later than 30 
days after the parties enter into such memo-
randum; and 
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(C) be revised periodically and renewed bi-
ennially by the parties to such memorandum, in 
alignment with the beginning of the school year. 
The requirements of the preceding sentence shall not 
apply where the local entity responsible for man-
aging the public preschool program is unable or un-
willing to enter into such a memorandum, and the 
prime sponsor shall inform the Secretary and the 
State Director of Child Care and Early Learning 
Program Collaboration of such inability or unwilling-
ness. 
(g) STANDARDS, CURRICULA, AND ASSESSMENT.— 
On receiving designation as a prime sponsor, the prime 
sponsor shall ensure that the child care and early learning 
program will— 
(1) take steps to ensure, to the maximum ex-
tent practicable, that children maintain the develop-
mental and educational gains achieved and build 
upon such gains in further schooling; 
(2) meet the national program standards set 
forth in section 121(a); 
(3) implement a research-based early childhood 
curriculum that— 
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(A) promotes young children’s school read-
iness 
in 
the 
areas 
listed 
in 
section 
121(a)(4)(A)(ii); 
(B) is based on scientifically valid research 
and has standardized training procedures and 
curriculum materials to support implementa-
tion; 
(C) is comprehensive and linked to an on-
going assessment and aligned with State early 
learning standards, within the meaning of sec-
tion 637 of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 
9832), which is conducted not more than twice 
a year, with developmental and learning goals 
and measurable objectives; and 
(D) is focused on improving the learning 
environment, teaching practices, parent and 
family member involvement, and child outcomes 
across all areas of development; 
(4) implement effective interventions and sup-
port services that help promote the school readiness 
of children participating in the child care and early 
learning program involved; 
(5) use research-based assessment methods, in-
cluding such methods that provide proven results re-
gardless of culture, race or ethnicity, or language 
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spoken at home, in order to support the educational 
instruction and school readiness of children in the 
program; 
(6) use research-based developmental screening 
tools that have been demonstrated to be— 
(A) standardized, reliable, valid, and accu-
rate for the child being assessed, to the max-
imum extent practicable; and 
(B) age, developmentally, culturally, and 
linguistically appropriate, for the child and, if 
relevant, appropriate for children with disabil-
ities; 
(7) adopt, in consultation with experts in child 
care and early learning and with classroom teachers, 
a non-punitive evaluation to assess classroom teach-
ers and to inform professional development plans, as 
appropriate, that leads to improved teacher effective-
ness; 
(8) establish goals and measurable objectives 
for the provision of health, educational, nutritional, 
social services, and other services provided under 
this title and related to the program mission and to 
promoting school readiness; 
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(9) develop procedures for identifying and pro-
moting the language knowledge and skills of dual 
language learner children; and 
(10) not use funds to develop or implement an 
assessment for children that— 
(A) will be used as the sole basis for a 
child care and early learning provider being de-
termined to be ineligible to participate in the 
program carried out under this title; 
(B) will be used as the primary or sole 
basis for providing a reward or sanction for an 
individual provider; 
(C) will be used as the primary or sole 
basis for assessing program effectiveness; or 
(D) will be used to deny children eligibility 
to participate in the program carried out under 
this title. 
(h) EXCEPTIONS.—Nothing in this title shall pre-
clude a State from using a single assessment (as deter-
mined by the State) for children for— 
(1) supporting learning or improving a class-
room environment; 
(2) targeting professional development to a pro-
vider; 
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(3) determining the need for health, mental 
health, disability, developmental delay, or family 
support services; 
(4) obtaining information for the quality im-
provement process at the State level; or 
(5) conducting a program evaluation for the 
purposes of improving the program and providing in-
formation to parents. 
(i) FUNDED ENROLLMENT.—Each prime sponsor 
shall enroll 100 percent of its funded enrollment, with on-
going outreach to the community and activities to identify 
underserved populations. 
(j) SLIDING FEE SCALE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to child care 
and early learning services provided through the pro-
gram, a prime sponsor— 
(A) shall not charge a fee with respect to 
any low-income child; and 
(B) may charge a fee with respect to any 
child who is not a low-income child, in accord-
ance with the sliding fee scale described in 
paragraph (2) and subject to paragraph (3). 
(2) SLIDING FEE SCALE.—A fee under this sub-
section shall be charged based on a sliding fee scale 
as follows: 
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(A) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
200 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 250 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 1 percent 
of the family income. 
(B) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
250 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 300 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 2 percent 
of the family income. 
(C) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
300 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 350 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 3 percent 
of the family income. 
(D) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
350 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 400 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 4 percent 
of the family income. 
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(E) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
400 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 450 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 5 percent 
of the family income. 
(F) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
450 percent of the poverty line but not more 
than 500 percent of the poverty line, the fee 
under this subsection shall not exceed 6 percent 
of the family income. 
(G) With respect to a child who is in a 
family with a family income that is more than 
500 percent of the poverty line, the fee under 
this subsection shall not exceed 7 percent of the 
family income. 
(3) FEE
PERCENTAGE
APPLICABLE
REGARD-
LESS OF NUMBER OF CHILDREN SERVED.—The total 
fee for a family that is subject to the fee under this 
subsection and has more than 1 child served through 
the program— 
(A) may increase as the family enters the 
second or a further child in the program; but 
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(B) may not be greater than the fee al-
lowed under paragraph (2). 
(k) PARENT BOARDS.—The prime sponsor shall re-
quire the establishment, at each child care and early learn-
ing center, of a board of parents, to be composed of par-
ents and family members of children attending the center. 
The board shall meet periodically with staff of the center 
for the purpose of discussing problems and concerns. 
(l) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this title 
shall be construed to alter or otherwise affect the rights, 
remedies, and procedures afforded to staff of child care 
and early learning programs or delegate providers, or em-
ployees of public schools, or local educational agencies, 
under Federal, State, tribal, or local laws (including appli-
cable regulations or court orders) or under the terms of 
collective bargaining agreements, memoranda of under-
standing, or other agreements between such staff or em-
ployees, and the corresponding program, provider, school, 
or agency. 
SEC. 115. DELEGATE PROVIDERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—A prime sponsor may use finan-
cial assistance made available under section 112(a)(1) to 
enter into an agreement with a delegate provider to carry 
out services as part of the child care and early learning 
program. 
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(b) APPLICATION.—To be able to receive financial as-
sistance under subsection (a) for a fiscal year as a delegate 
provider to carry out services as part of the child care and 
early learning program, a public or private agency or orga-
nization shall submit a delegate provider application to a 
prime sponsor, at such time and in such manner as the 
prime sponsor may require, that provides— 
(1) that the delegate provider applicant is an 
entity that is a locality, local educational agency, 
faith-based organization, public or private nonprofit 
or for-profit agency or organization, family child 
care network or association, employer or business or-
ganization, labor union, employee or labor-manage-
ment organization, home-based child care provider, 
or public or private educational agency or institu-
tion; and 
(2) that the entity will provide for such fiscal 
control and fund accounting procedures as the Sec-
retary shall prescribe to assure proper disbursement 
of and accounting for Federal funds. 
(c) APPROVAL.—A delegate provider application may 
be approved by a prime sponsor upon its determination 
that such application meets the requirements of this sec-
tion and that the services to be provided will otherwise 
further the objectives and satisfy the appropriate provi-
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sions of the prime sponsor’s child care and early learning 
plan as approved pursuant to section 114. On approval 
of the application, the entity shall be considered to be a 
delegate provider, for purposes of this title. 
(d) FAMILY
AND
COMMUNITY
INVOLVEMENT.— 
Prime sponsors shall involve parents, family members, and 
community members in the selection process of delegate 
providers. 
Subtitle B—Standards 
SEC. 121. NATIONAL PROGRAM STANDARDS, MONITORING 
OF CHILD CARE AND EARLY LEARNING PRO-
GRAMS. 
(a) STANDARDS
FOR CHILD CARE
AND EARLY 
LEARNING SERVICES.— 
(1) ISSUANCE.— 
(A) NATIONAL
PROGRAM
STANDARDS.— 
Within 18 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall, after consulta-
tion with other Federal agencies, and on the 
basis of the recommendations of the Committee 
established pursuant to paragraph (3), issue a 
common set of national program standards 
which shall be applicable to all prime sponsors, 
with respect to their child care and early learn-
ing programs providing child care and early 
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learning services with financial assistance under 
this title, to be known as the ‘‘Federal Stand-
ards for Child Care and Early Learning Serv-
ices’’. 
(B) BASELINE FOR KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, 
AND COMPETENCIES.—The standards shall es-
tablish a baseline threshold for knowledge, 
skills, and competencies for child care and early 
learning teachers and staff that— 
(i) shall be aligned with compensation 
levels; 
(ii) shall be phased in; and 
(iii) shall be determined by the Sec-
retary to be in alignment with the knowl-
edge, skills, and competency expectations 
of the child care and early learning, or 
early childhood education, profession. 
(2) 
COMPREHENSIVENESS.—As 
appropriate 
and practicable, the Secretary shall make efforts to 
ensure that the Federal Standards for Child Care 
and Early Learning Services are as comprehensive 
as the Head Start program performance standards 
in section 641A(a) of the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 
9836a(a)), and the performance standards for pro-
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viders and programs issued under the military child 
care program. 
(3) SPECIAL COMMITTEE.— 
(A) APPOINTMENT.—The Secretary shall, 
within 60 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, appoint a Special Committee on Fed-
eral Standards for Child Care and Early Learn-
ing Services. 
(B) COMPOSITION.—The Committee shall 
include— 
(i) parents or legal guardians of chil-
dren participating in child care and early 
learning programs; 
(ii) representatives of prime sponsors 
carrying out child care and early learning 
programs; 
(iii) representatives of staff of child 
care and early learning programs, includ-
ing teachers; 
(iv) representatives of tribes and trib-
al organizations carrying out child care 
and early learning programs on Indian 
land; 
(v) representatives of family child care 
home providers, staff and employers for 
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center-based child care and early learning 
programs, and family child care home pro-
viders in child care and early learning pro-
grams; and 
(vi) specialists covering the areas of 
child care and early learning quality, work-
force preparation, working conditions, and 
wages, and early childhood development. 
(C) DIVERSITY.—The Secretary shall en-
sure that the membership of the Committee is 
diverse with regard to culture, race and eth-
nicity, and language. 
(D) DUTIES.—Such Committee shall rec-
ommend Federal Standards for Child Care and 
Early Learning Services and modifications of 
such standards as provided in paragraph (1). 
(4) CONTENT OF STANDARDS.—The standards 
shall include— 
(A) performance standards with respect to 
services required to be provided, including 
health, nutritional, and social services, and 
other services, including parental and family 
member involvement services and transition ac-
tivities described in section 122; 
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(B) 
scientifically-based 
and 
develop-
mentally appropriate early development and 
learning performance standards related to 
school readiness to ensure that the children 
participating in the child care and early learn-
ing program, at a minimum, develop and dem-
onstrate— 
(i) language knowledge and skills, in-
cluding oral language and listening com-
prehension; 
(ii) literacy knowledge and skills, in-
cluding 
phonological 
awareness, 
print 
awareness and skills, and alphabetic knowl-
edge; 
(iii) 
mathematics 
knowledge 
and 
skills; 
(iv) science knowledge and skills; 
(v) cognitive abilities that support 
academic achievement and child care and 
early learning; 
(vi) approaches to learning related to 
child care and early learning; 
(vii) social and emotional development 
sufficient to be a foundation for early 
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learning, school success, and social prob-
lem-solving; 
(viii) creative arts expression; 
(ix) physical development; and 
(x) in the case of dual language learn-
er children, progress toward language 
knowledge 
and 
development, 
including 
progress made through the use of cul-
turally and linguistically appropriate in-
structional services; 
(C) administrative and financial manage-
ment standards; 
(D) standards relating to the condition and 
location of facilities (including indoor air qual-
ity assessment standards, where appropriate) 
for such prime sponsors, including regulations 
that require that the facilities used for child 
care and early learning programs for regularly 
scheduled center-based and combination pro-
gram option classroom activities— 
(i) shall meet or exceed State and 
local requirements concerning licensing for 
such facilities; and 
(ii) shall be accessible by State and 
local authorities for purposes of monitoring 
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and ensuring compliance, unless State or 
local laws prohibit such access; 
(E) standards related to the work environ-
ment, including standards for the health and 
safety, and well-being, of teachers and other 
staff in the child care and early learning pro-
grams; and 
(F) such other standards as the Secretary 
finds to be appropriate. 
(5) 
CONSIDERATIONS
REGARDING
STAND-
ARDS.—In developing standards required under 
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 
(A) consult with experts in the fields of 
child care and early learning, early childhood 
education, child health care, family services (in-
cluding linguistically and culturally appropriate 
services to dual language learner children and 
their families), administration, and financial 
management, and with persons with experience 
in the operation of child care and early learning 
programs; 
(B) take into consideration— 
(i) past experience with use of the 
standards in effect under the Head Start 
Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) on the date 
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of enactment of the Improving Head Start 
for School Readiness Act of 2007; 
(ii) developments concerning research- 
based practices with respect to early child-
hood education and development, children 
with disabilities, homeless children, chil-
dren in foster care, and family services, 
and best practices with respect to program 
administration and financial management; 
(iii) appropriateness of standards for 
prime sponsors with respect to their pro-
grams, recognizing differences in types of 
settings (including center-based and home- 
based settings), geography of the service 
area, and the culture, language, and age 
distribution of the children served; 
(iv) projected needs of expanding child 
care and early learning programs; 
(v) guidelines and standards that pro-
mote child health and physical develop-
ment, including participation in outdoor 
activity that supports children’s motor de-
velopment and overall health and nutrition; 
(vi) changes in the characteristics of 
the population of children who are access-
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ing child care and early learning programs, 
including country of origin, language back-
ground, and family structure of such chil-
dren, and changes in the population and 
number of such children who are in foster 
care or are homeless children; 
(vii) mechanisms to ensure that chil-
dren participating in child care and early 
learning programs make a successful tran-
sition to the schools that the children will 
be attending; 
(viii) the need for prime sponsors to 
maintain regular communications with par-
ents and family members, including con-
ducting periodic meetings to discuss the 
progress of individual children in child care 
and early learning programs; 
(ix) the unique challenges faced by in-
dividual programs, including those pro-
grams that are seasonal or short-term and 
those programs that serve rural popu-
lations; 
(x) the degree to which standards are 
streamlined and minimize administrative 
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burdens on child care and early learning 
program providers; 
(xi) the depth of demonstrated skills, 
experiences, and linguistic, cultural, and 
racial and ethnic, diversity of providers for 
child care and early learning programs; 
and 
(xii) the input of parents and family 
members; 
(C)(i) review and revise as necessary the 
standards in effect under this subsection; and 
(ii) ensure that any such revisions in the 
standards will not result in the elimination of or 
any reduction in quality, scope, or types of 
health, educational, nutritional, social, or other 
services, including parental and family member 
involvement services, required to be provided 
under such standards as in effect on the date 
of enactment of this Act; and 
(D) consult with appropriate officials from 
Indian tribes and tribal organizations, experts 
in Indian or Native Hawaiian early childhood 
education and development, linguists, and asso-
ciations related to child care and early learning 
programs providing services for children belong-
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ing to Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian chil-
dren, on the review and promulgation of stand-
ards under paragraph (1) (including standards 
for Indian or Native Hawaiian, as the case may 
be, language acquisition and school readiness). 
(6) ADEQUATE TIME TO MEET STANDARDS.— 
The Secretary shall establish an effective date for 
the standards that allows adequate time for prime 
sponsors to meet the standards after they have been 
issued. 
(b) UNIFORM CODE FOR FACILITIES.— 
(1) 
ESTABLISHMENT
OF
SPECIAL
COM-
MITTEE.—The Secretary shall, within 60 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, appoint a special 
committee to develop and recommend a uniform 
code for facilities, to be used as described in para-
graph (4). The standards in the code shall deal prin-
cipally with those aspects of facilities that are essen-
tial to the health, safety, and physical comfort of the 
children involved and the aspects of facilities that 
are related to the Federal Standards for Child Care 
and Early Learning Services under subsection 
(a)(1). In recommending the provisions of the code, 
the Secretary shall take into consideration the dif-
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ferences between child care centers and family child 
care homes. 
(2) COMPOSITION OF COMMITTEE.—The special 
committee appointed under this subsection shall in-
clude parents or family members of children partici-
pating in child care and early learning programs and 
representatives of State and local facility licensing 
agencies, of public health officials, of fire prevention 
officials, of the construction industry and labor 
unions, of prime sponsors, of center-based providers 
and family child care home providers, and of na-
tional agencies or organizations interested in the de-
velopment of children. Not less than one-half of the 
membership of the committee shall consist of par-
ents or family members of children participating in 
child care and early learning programs conducted 
under this title. 
(3) PROPOSED CODE.—Within 1 year after its 
appointment, the special committee— 
(A) shall develop standards for a proposed 
uniform code for facilities in which child care 
and early learning services are provided; and 
(B) shall hold public hearings on the pro-
posed code prior to submitting its final rec-
ommendation to the Secretary for approval. 
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(4) PROMULGATION.—After considering the 
recommendations submitted by the special com-
mittee in accordance with paragraph (3), the Sec-
retary shall promulgate standards for a uniform 
code described in paragraph (3)(A), which shall be 
applicable to all facilities receiving Federal financial 
assistance under this title. If the Secretary dis-
approves the committee’s recommendations, the Sec-
retary shall state the reasons for the disapproval. 
The Secretary shall also distribute such standards 
and urge their adoption by States and local govern-
ments for facilities in which child care and early 
learning services are provided. The Secretary may 
from time to time modify the uniform code for facili-
ties in accordance with procedures set forth in this 
subsection. 
(5) ADEQUATE
TIME
TO
MEET
FACILITIES 
CODE.—The Secretary shall establish an effective 
date for the code that allows adequate time for 
prime sponsors to meet the code after it has been 
promulgated. 
(6) STATE CODE FOR FACILITIES.—Paragraphs 
(1) through (5) shall not apply in a State for which 
the Secretary, after consultation with the special 
committee referred to in paragraph (2), makes a de-
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termination that the State’s uniform code for facili-
ties or a similar facilities code or set of standards 
that applies to centers and family child care homes 
that participate in a child care and early learning 
program under this title, is sufficient to meet the 
health, safety, and physical comfort goals of this 
subsection. 
(c) MEASURES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in consulta-
tion with representatives of child care and early 
learning programs, Indian tribes and tribal organiza-
tions, parents and family members of children in 
such programs, and teachers and other staff in such 
programs, and with experts in the fields of early 
childhood education and development, family serv-
ices, and program management, shall use the study 
on Developmental Outcomes and Assessments for 
Young Children by the National Academy of 
Sciences, consistent with section 649(j) of the Head 
Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9844(j)), and other relevant 
research to establish, inform, revise, and provide 
guidance to prime sponsors for utilizing, scientif-
ically-based measures that support, as appropriate— 
(A) classroom instructional practices and, 
for infants and toddlers, responsive caregiving 
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practices that support early learning and devel-
opment; 
(B) identification of children with special 
needs; 
(C) program evaluation; and 
(D) administrative and financial manage-
ment practices. 
(2) CHARACTERISTICS
OF
MEASURES.—The 
measures under this subsection shall— 
(A) be developmentally, linguistically, and 
culturally appropriate for the population served; 
(B) be reviewed periodically, based on ad-
vances in the science of early childhood develop-
ment; 
(C) be consistent with relevant, nationally 
recognized professional and technical standards 
related to the assessment of young children; 
(D) be valid and reliable in the language in 
which the measures are administered; 
(E) be administered by staff with appro-
priate training for such administration; 
(F) provide for appropriate accommoda-
tions for children with disabilities and dual lan-
guage learner children; 
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(G) be high-quality research-based meas-
ures that have been demonstrated to assist with 
the purposes for which the measures were de-
vised; and 
(H) be adaptable, as appropriate, for use 
in the self-assessment of prime sponsors, in-
cluding in the evaluation of administrative and 
financial management practices. 
(3) USE
OF
MEASURES; 
LIMITATIONS
ON 
USE.— 
(A) USE.—The measures shall be de-
signed, as appropriate, for the purpose of— 
(i) helping to develop the skills, 
knowledge, abilities, and development de-
scribed in subsection (a)(4)(A)(ii) of chil-
dren participating in child care and early 
learning programs, with an emphasis on 
measuring skills that scientifically valid re-
search has demonstrated are related to 
children’s school readiness and later suc-
cess in school; 
(ii) improving classroom practices, in-
cluding reviewing children’s strengths and 
weaknesses and individualizing instruction 
to better meet the needs of the children in-
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volved and, for infants and toddlers, ensur-
ing the opportunity for one-on-one inter-
action that facilitates early learning and 
development; 
(iii) identifying the special needs of 
children; and 
(iv) improving overall program per-
formance in order to help prime sponsors 
identify problem areas that may require 
additional training and technical assistance 
resources. 
(B) LIMITATIONS.—Such measures shall 
not be used for an assessment for children 
that— 
(i) will be used as the sole basis for a 
child care and early learning provider 
being determined to be ineligible to partici-
pate in the program carried out under this 
title; 
(ii) will be used as the primary or sole 
basis for providing a reward or sanction 
for an individual provider; 
(iii) will be used as the primary or 
sole basis for assessing program effective-
ness; or 
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(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; 
(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 
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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-
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. 
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(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 tribal 
organizations, parents and family members of children in 
such programs, teachers and other staff in such programs, 
and with experts in the fields of early childhood education 
and development, family services, and program manage-
ment, shall establish and implement monitoring proce-
dures 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-
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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— 
(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-
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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 
(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 
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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 
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. 
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(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 
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— 
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(i) distribution through public agen-
cies; and 
(ii) posting such information on the 
Internet; and 
(C) Indian tribes and tribal organizations. 
(3) REPORT INFORMATION.—Such report shall 
contain detailed data— 
(A) on compliance with specific standards 
and measures; and 
(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 
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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-
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; 
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(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; 
(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-
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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 
(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 
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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; 
(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. 
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(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 
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 assure that adequate 
nutrition services will be provided in child care and early 
learning programs under this title. In assuring 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. 
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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 not younger than the age of 6 
weeks and are younger than the age of compulsory school 
attendance shall be eligible regardless of family income, 
disability status, citizenship status, employment of a fam-
ily 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 
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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 
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 assure 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 
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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. 
(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, 
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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 assure that pro-
grams under this title have adequate internal admin-
istrative controls, accounting requirements, per-
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 
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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 
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 
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100 
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 
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; 
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101 
(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. 
(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 
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102 
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 
hearing for any prime sponsor (including a delegate 
provider), finds— 
(A) that the prime sponsor has failed to 
comply substantially with any requirement set 
forth in the plan of the prime sponsor approved 
under section 113 or 114; 
(B) that the delegate provider has failed to 
comply substantially with any requirement set 
forth in the application of the provider ap-
proved pursuant to section 115(c); or 
(C) that in the operation of any program 
(or services) carried out by any such prime 
sponsor (or delegate provider) under this title 
the prime sponsor (or delegate provider) has 
failed to comply substantially with any applica-
ble provision of this title, including a regulation 
promulgated under this title. 
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103 
(2) ACTION.—On making a finding under para-
graph (1), the Secretary shall notify the prime spon-
sor or delegate provider involved of the findings and 
that no further payments may be made to such 
prime sponsor or delegate provider under this title 
(or in the Secretary’s discretion that any such prime 
sponsor shall not make further payments under this 
title to specified delegate providers affected by the 
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. 
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104 
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 
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 FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Prime sponsors shall carry 
out training and quality improvement activities, in-
cluding— 
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(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 
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. 
(d) 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 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 training 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. 
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106 
(3) Child abuse prevention and detection. 
(4) Cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other 
emergency medical procedures. 
(e) WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND DIVERSITY.— 
(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 TO INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDU-
CATION.— 
(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 institutions of higher edu-
cation, with priority for part B institutions, 
Hispanic-serving institutions, and Tribal Col-
leges and Universities (as the 3 types of institu-
tions 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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107 
(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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109 
cation of family child care home providers), and in-
cluding a requirement to satisfactorily complete 
training under section 135(d). 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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110 
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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111 
(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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112 
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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