I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2175
To improve the quality of child care, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 10, 1999
Mr. STARK (for himself, Ms. NORTON, Mr. BISHOP, and Ms. DELAURO) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Edu-
cation and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and
Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned
A BILL
To improve the quality of child care, and for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Child Care Quality
Improvement Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. ALLOTMENTS TO STATES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make allot-
ments under subsection (b) to eligible States to pay for
the Federal share of the cost of enabling the States to
make grants to local collaboratives under section 3 for ac-
tivities to improve the quality of child care.
(b) ALLOTMENT.—From the funds appropriated
under section 6 to carry out this Act for each fiscal year
and not reserved under subsection (h), the Secretary shall
allot to each eligible State an amount that bears the same
relationship to such funds as the total number of children
in poverty in the State bears to the total number of chil-
dren in poverty in all eligible States.
(c) STATE BOARDS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—In order for a State to be el-
igible for a grant under section 418(c) of the Social
Security Act, the Governor of the State shall estab-
lish, or designate an entity to serve as, a Child Care
Quality Advisory Board, which shall receive the
grant and make the grants described in section 3.
(2) ESTABLISHED BOARD.—A State board es-
tablished under paragraph (1) shall consist of mem-
bers appointed by the Governor, including—
(A) representatives of all State agencies
primarily providing services to children in the
State;
(B) parents of children in the State;
(C) representatives of community and non-
profit organizations representing or providing
services to children and their parents, such as
organizations providing child care, carrying out
Head Start programs under the Head Start Act
(42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.), providing prekinder-
garten education, mental health, or family sup-
port services; and
(D) representatives of local educational
agencies who have expertise in early childhood
development.
(3) DESIGNATED BOARD.—The Governor may
designate an entity to serve as the State board
under paragraph (1) if the entity includes the mem-
bers described in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of
paragraph (2).
(4) DESIGNATED
STATE
AGENCY.—The Gov-
ernor shall designate a State agency that has a rep-
resentative on the State board to provide adminis-
trative oversight concerning the use of funds made
available under this Act and ensure accountability
for the funds.
(d) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant
to a State under section 418(c) of the Social Security Act,
a State board shall annually submit an application to the
Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing
such information as the Secretary may require. At a min-
imum, the application shall contain—
(1) sufficient information about the entity es-
tablished or designated under subsection (c) to serve
as the State board to enable the Secretary to deter-
mine whether the entity complies with the require-
ments of such subsection;
(2) a list of goals for quantifiable improvements
in child care quality within the State, that accom-
plish the following:
(A) Increased training for child care pro-
viders and administrators.
(B) Enhanced licensing standards (includ-
ing at a minimum health and safety, adult-to-
child ratios, and group size) that will apply to
a broader range of child care providers.
(C) Reduced number of unlicensed pro-
viders offering child care.
(D) Increased State monitoring and en-
forcement of licensed providers.
(E) Decreased caregiver turnover rates of
child care providers through incentives such as
increased compensation or scholarships to sup-
port continuing education in academic areas re-
lated to child care and development.
(F) Higher levels of accreditation among
licensed child care providers.
(G) Other standards and practices to im-
prove the quality of child care;
(3) a comprehensive State plan for reaching the
goals listed pursuant to paragraph (2);
(4) an assurance that the State board will pro-
vide such information as the Secretary shall by regu-
lation require on the amount of State and local pub-
lic funds expended in the State to provide services
for children; and
(5) an assurance that the State board shall an-
nually compile and submit to the Secretary informa-
tion from the reports referred to in section
3(e)(3)(C) that describes the results referred to in
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 3(e)(3).
(e) STATE ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—A State may
use not more than 5 percent of the amount of a grant
made to the State under section 418(c) of the Social Secu-
rity Act to pay for State administrative costs related to
carrying out this Act.
(f) MONITORING.—The Secretary shall monitor the
activities of States that receive a grant made under section
418(c) of the Social Security Act to ensure compliance
with the requirements of this Act, including compliance
with the State plans.
(g) ENFORCEMENT.—If the Secretary determines
that a State that is otherwise eligible for a grant under
section 418(c) of the Social Security Act for a fiscal year
is not complying with a requirement of this Act, the Sec-
retary may—
(1) subject to the limitation in subsection (h),
provide technical assistance to the State to improve
the quality of child care services and the ability of
the State to comply with the goals described in sub-
section (d)(2);
(2) reduce, by not less than 5 percent, the
amount of the grant otherwise payable to the State
under such section for the fiscal year, for the second
determination of noncompliance;
(3) reduce, by not less than 25 percent, the
amount of the grant otherwise payable to the State
under such section for the fiscal year, for the third
determination of noncompliance; or
(4) revoke the eligibility of the State for any
grant under such section, for the fourth or subse-
quent determination of noncompliance.
(h) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—From the funds ap-
propriated under section 6 for each fiscal year, the Sec-
retary shall reserve not more than 1 percent of the funds
to pay for the costs of providing technical assistance. The
Secretary shall use the reserved funds to enter into con-
tracts with eligible entities to provide technical assistance
to local collaboratives that receive grants under section 3,
relating to the functions of the local collaboratives under
this Act.
SEC. 3. USE OF FUNDS.
(a) USE BY STATE BOARD.—A State board that re-
ceives a grant made under section 418(c) of the Social
Security Act shall use the grant to—
(1) establish and enforce State child care licens-
ing requirements; and
(2) make grants, on a competitive basis, to local
collaboratives to carry out activities to improve the
quality of child care.
(b) USE BY LOCAL COLLABORATIVE.—A local col-
laborative that receives funds through a grant made under
subsection (a) may use such funds—
(1) to carry out the plan included in the appli-
cation for the grant; and
(2) to prepare reports described in subsection
(e)(3)(C).
(c) MULTIYEAR FUNDING.—In making grants under
this section, a State board may make grants for grant pe-
riods of more than 1 year to local collaboratives with dem-
onstrated success in carrying out activities to improve the
quality of child care.
(d) LOCAL COLLABORATIVES.—To be eligible to re-
ceive a grant under this section for a community, a local
collaborative shall demonstrate that the collaborative—
(1) is able to provide, through a coordinated ef-
fort, activities to improve the quality of child care to
children in the community and their parents; and
(2) includes—
(A) public agencies primarily providing
services to children in the community;
(B) parents of children in the community;
(C) businesses that provide child care serv-
ices in the community;
(D) representatives of the local government
of the county or other political subdivision in
which the community is located;
(E) representatives of community and non-
profit organizations that represent or provide
services for low-income individuals in the com-
munity;
(F) community-based organizations pro-
viding services to children and their parents,
such as organizations providing child care, car-
rying out Head Start programs, or providing
prekindergarten education, mental health, or
family support services; and
(G) persons with expertise in early child-
hood development.
(e) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant
under this section, a local collaborative shall submit an
application to the State board at such time, in such man-
ner, and containing such information as the State board
may require. At a minimum, the application shall
contain—
(1) sufficient information about the entity de-
scribed in subsection (d)(2) to enable the State
board to determine whether the entity complies with
the requirements of such subsection;
(2) a comprehensive plan to accomplish the fol-
lowing:
(A) Increase training for child care pro-
viders and administrators.
(B) Comply with State licensing standards
(including at a minimum health and safety,
adult-to-child ratios, group size, and criminal
background checks) that may apply to a broad-
er range of child care providers than currently
exists in the community.
(C) Reduce the number of unlicensed pro-
viders offering child care.
(D) Decrease caregiver turnover rates at
child care providers through incentives such as
increased compensation.
(E) Increase levels of accreditation among
licensed child care providers.
(F) Otherwise improve the quality of child
care; and
(3) a description of the manner in which the
collaborative plans to submit information, at such
intervals as the State board may require, to the
State board to enable the State board to carry out
monitoring under section 2(f), including the manner
in which the collaborative plans to—
(A) evaluate the results achieved by the
collaborative for implementing the plan sub-
mitted under paragraph (2);
(B) evaluate how child care services can be
more effectively improved and made available to
children and their parents; and
(C) prepare and submit to the State board
annual reports describing the results of the
evaluations under subparagraphs (A) and (B).
(f) DISTRIBUTION.—In making grants under this sec-
tion, the State board shall ensure that at least 60 percent
of the funds made available through each grant are used
to provide the activities to improve the quality of child care
to children (and parents of children) who reside in school
districts in which half or more of the students would be
eligible to receive free or reduced price lunches under the
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.).
(g) MONITORING.—The State board shall monitor the
activities of local collaboratives that receive grants under
this Act to ensure compliance with the requirements of
this Act.
SEC. 4. SUPPLEMENT NOT SUPPLANT.
Funds received from a grant made under section
418(c) of the Social Security Act shall be used to supple-
ment and not supplant other Federal, State, and local
public funds expended to provide services for children.
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act the following definitions
apply:
(1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term
‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given
the term in section 14101 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8801).
(2) POVERTY LINE.—The term ‘‘poverty line’’
means the poverty line (as defined by the Office of
Management and Budget, and revised annually in
accordance with section 673(2) of the Community
Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) appli-
cable to a family of the applicable size.
(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the
several States, the District of Columbia, the Com-
monwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam,
the Virgin Islands, and any other territory or posses-
sion of the United States.
(5) STATE BOARD.—The term ‘‘State board’’
means a State Child Care Quality Advisory Board
established under section 2(c).
SEC. 6. FUNDING.
Section 418 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
618) is amended—
(1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘this section’’
each place it appears and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’;
(2) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as
subsections (d) and (e), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(c) APPROPRIATIONS FOR CHILD CARE QUALITY
IMPROVEMENT GRANT.—Out of any money in the Treas-
ury of the United States not otherwise appropriated, there
are appropriated $600,000,000 for each of the fiscal years
2000 through 2004 to carry out the Child Care Quality
Improvement Act of 1999.’’.
SEC. 7. ADVISORY COMMISSION.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a com-
mission to be known as the ‘‘Advisory Commission on
Quality Child Care’’.
(b) DUTIES.—The Commission shall—
(1) identify and study—
(A) the most important issues affecting the
quality of child care;
(B) the most efficient and effective manner
of ensuring that families in the United States
will receive quality child care; and
(C) other related topics that the Commis-
sion considers appropriate; and
(2) 
develop 
and 
make 
recommendations
regarding—
(A) feasible goals and targets for child care
programs to improve the quality of child care
provided in accordance with such programs;
(B) national standards for the quality of
child care; and
(C) other related topics that the Commis-
sion considers appropriate.
(c) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.—
The Commission shall be composed of 9 members who
shall be appointed by the President before the expiration
of the 6-month period beginning on the date of the enact-
ment of this Act.
(d) QUALIFICATIONS OF MEMBERS.—Each of the in-
dividuals appointed under subsection (a) shall be an indi-
vidual with distinctive expertise or experience in child care
or early childhood development.
(e) TERMS.—Each member shall be appointed for the
life of the Commission. Any vacancy in the Commission
shall not affect its powers, but shall be filled in the manner
in which the original appointment was made.
(f) BASIC PAY.—Each member shall serve without
pay.
(g) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall receive
travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,
in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5,
United States Code.
(h) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the
Commission shall constitute a quorum but a lesser number
may hold hearings.
(i) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of the Commis-
sion shall be designated by the President. The term of of-
fice of the Chairperson shall be for the life of the Commis-
sion. A vacancy in the office of the Chairperson shall be
filled in the manner in which the original designation was
made.
(j) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet not less
than 4 times. The initial meeting of the Commission shall
be at the call of the Chairperson and shall occur within
the 90-day period beginning on the date on which all mem-
bers of the Commission have been appointed. After the
initial meeting, the Commission shall meet at the call of
the Chairperson or a majority of its members.
(k) DIRECTOR.—The Commission shall have a Direc-
tor who shall be appointed by the Secretary of Health and
Human Services. The Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall fix the pay of the Director.
(l) STAFF.—Upon request of the Commission, the
Secretary of Health and Human Services shall detail, and
the head of any other Federal department or agency may
detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the personnel of
that department or agency to the Commission to assist
it in carrying out its duties under this Act.
(m) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SERVICES.—Upon
the request of the Commission, the Administrator of Gen-
eral Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reim-
bursable basis, the administrative support services nec-
essary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities
under this Act.
(n) HEARINGS
AND SESSIONS.—The Commission
may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act, hold hear-
ings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and
receive evidence as the Commission considers appropriate.
(o) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any mem-
ber or agent of the Commission may, if authorized by the
Commission, take any action that the Commission is au-
thorized to take by this section.
(p) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Commission
may secure directly from any department or agency of the
United States information necessary to enable the Com-
mission to carry out this Act. Upon request of the Chair-
person, the head of the department or agency shall furnish
the information to the Commission.
(q) GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND DEVISES.—The Commis-
sion may accept, use, and dispose of gifts, bequests, or
devises of services or property, both real and personal, for
the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of the Com-
mission. Gifts, bequests, or devises of money and proceeds
from sales of other property received as gifts, bequests,
or devises shall be deposited in the Treasury and shall be
available for disbursement upon order of the Commission.
(r) MAILS.—The Commission may use the United
States mails in the same manner and under the same con-
ditions as other departments and agencies of the United
States.
(s) REPORTS.—
(1) INTERIM REPORTS.—As soon as practicable
after any hearing held by the Commission, the Com-
mission shall submit to the President, Congress, and
the Secretary of Health and Human Services an in-
terim report summarizing the hearing and con-
taining any other information the Commission con-
siders appropriate.
(2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 years
after the date of the initial meeting of the Commis-
sion, the Commission shall submit to the President,
Congress, and the Secretary of Health and Human
Services a final report that—
(A) shall set forth the consensus findings
and recommendations of the Commission; and
(B) may set forth the majority but noncon-
sensus findings and recommendations of the
Commission and any other information that the
Commission considers appropriate.
(3) REPORT BY SECRETARY.—Not later than 2
years after the date on which the Commission sub-
mits its final report, the Secretary of Health and
Human Services shall submit to Congress a report
describing any actions that the Secretary of Health
and Human Services has taken with respect to the
final report of the Commission.
(t) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall terminate
2 years after the date of its initial meeting, or on the date
on which the Commission submits its final report, which-
ever occurs first.
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