Military Child Care Expansion Act of 2021
Bill: S.1572 | Sponsor: Sen. Duckworth, Tammy (D-IL)
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Military Child Care Expansion Act of 2021
This bill modifies and implements policies to update child care facilities and administration at the Department of Defense (DOD).
Specifically, the bill removes certain requirements for members of the Armed Forces to receive funding for an in-home child care provider under the DOD pilot program that provides financial assistance to such members who pay for in-home child care. The bill also allows DOD to expand the pilot program to additional locations (currently it is authorized for five).
DOD must establish a three-year pilot program to expand access to child care for members of the Armed Forces by entering into agreements with public or private child care facilities or development centers.
Under the bill, DOD must determine the (1) root causes contributing to poor or failing facility conditions at its child development centers, and (2) total cost to improve the conditions of such centers. The Government Accountability Office must review the determinations and make recommendations on how to improve DOD child development center conditions.
Lastly, DOD must utilize its existing authority to carry out minor military construction projects to construct child development centers.

To expand child care opportunities for members of the Armed Forces, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Military Child Care Expansion Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. EXPANSION OF PILOT PROGRAM TO PROVIDE FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO 
              MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES FOR IN-HOME CHILD CARE.

    Section 589 of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Public Law 116-283) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(3)--
                    (A) by striking ``Secretary shall--'' and all that 
                follows through ``private sector; and'' and inserting 
                ``Secretary shall take into consideration 
                qualifications for in-home child care providers in the 
                private sector.''; and
                    (B) by striking subparagraph (B); and
            (2) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following: 
        ``The Secretary of Defense may expand the pilot program to 
        additional locations.''.

SEC. 3. PILOT PROGRAM TO EXPAND ACCESS TO CHILD CARE TO THE DEPARTMENT 
              OF DEFENSE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall establish a pilot 
program to expand access to child care for members of the Armed Forces 
by entering into agreements with public or private child care 
facilities or development centers.
    (b) Scope.--In carrying out the pilot program, the Secretary 
shall--
            (1) seek to enter into one or more memoranda of 
        understanding with one or more eligible civilian child care 
        centers or facilities to reserve slots for qualified families 
        in locations in which--
                    (A) the Department of Defense lacks a child 
                development center; or
                    (B) the wait lists for the nearest Department of 
                Defense child development center, where applicable, 
                indicate that qualified families may not be 
                accommodated; and
            (2) select five locations that the Secretary determines 
        have the greatest unmet demand for child care services for 
        children of members of the Armed Forces, including at least one 
        facility in each location that offers extended or flexible 
        hours to provide care after hours and on weekends.
    (c) Annual Assessment of Results.--Not later than one year after 
establishing the pilot program under subsection (a), the Secretary 
shall undertake a current assessment of the impact of the pilot program 
on access to childcare facilities or child development centers for 
qualified families.
    (d) Reports.--
            (1) Interim reports.--Not later than one year after the 
        Secretary establishes the pilot program and twice annually 
        thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on 
        Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives 
        an interim report on the pilot program. Each interim report 
        shall include the following elements:
                    (A) The number of military families participating 
                in the pilot program, disaggregated by location and 
                duration of participation.
                    (B) A breakdown of the total cost, including any 
                subsidies or financial assistance, charged by the 
                childcare facility or child development center.
                    (C) The impact of the program on wait times at 
                Department of Defense child care development centers.
                    (D) The feasibility of expanding the pilot program.
                    (E) Recommendations for legislation or 
                administrative actions that the Secretary determines 
                necessary to make the pilot program permanent.
                    (F) Any other information the Secretary determines 
                appropriate.
            (2) Final report.--Not later than 90 days after the 
        termination of the pilot program, the Secretary shall submit to 
        the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of 
        Representatives a final report on the pilot program. The report 
        shall include the following elements:
                    (A) The elements specified in paragraph (1).
                    (B) The recommendation of the Secretary whether to 
                make the pilot program permanent.
    (e) Expansion.--Based on the recommendations included in the 
interim reports, the Secretary may expand the scope of the pilot 
program to include more than five locations if the Secretary determines 
access to childcare is improved and such expansion would likely benefit 
Department of Defense families.
    (f) Termination.--The pilot program shall terminate three years 
after the date on which the Secretary establishes the pilot program.
    (g) Eligible Civilian Child Care Center or Facility Defined.--In 
this section, the term ``eligible civilian child care center or 
facility'' has the meaning given the term ``eligible provider'' in 
section 1798(b) of title 10, United States Code.

SEC. 4. DETERMINATION OF CAUSES OF POOR OR FAILING CONDITIONS AT CHILD 
              DEVELOPMENT CENTERS OF DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AND COSTS TO 
              IMPROVE SUCH CONDITIONS.

    (a) Determinations.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense shall determine--
                    (A) the root causes contributing to poor or failing 
                facility conditions at child development centers of the 
                Department of Defense; and
                    (B) the total cost to improve the facility 
                conditions of such centers to at least fair condition, 
                as determined by the Secretary.
            (2) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
        report on the determinations of the Secretary under paragraph 
        (1).
    (b) Comptroller General Review and Recommendations.--Not later than 
one year after the date on which the Secretary submits to Congress the 
report under subsection (a)(2) on the determinations of the Secretary 
under subsection (a)(1), the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall--
            (1) review such determinations; and
            (2) submit to the Secretary and Congress recommendations on 
        how to improve the facility conditions at child development 
        centers of the Department.

SEC. 5. TEMPORARY PROGRAM TO USE MINOR MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AUTHORITY 
              FOR CONSTRUCTION OF CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTERS.

    (a) Thresholds on Construction Authorized.--The Secretary of 
Defense shall establish a program to carry out minor military 
construction projects under section 2805 of title 10, United States 
Code, to construct child development centers.
    (b) Increased Maximum Amounts Applicable to Minor Construction 
Projects.--For the purpose of any military construction project carried 
out under the program under this section, the amounts specified in 
section 2805 of title 10, United States Code, are modified as follows:
            (1) The amount specified in subsection (a)(2) of such 
        section is deemed to be $25,000,000.
            (2) The amount specified in subsection (c) of such section 
        is deemed to be $25,000,000.
    (c) Notification and Approval Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The notification and approval requirements 
        under section 2805(b) of title 10, United States Code, shall 
        remain in effect for construction projects carried out under 
        the program under this section.
            (2) Procedures.--The Secretary shall establish procedures 
        for the review and approval of requests from the Secretaries of 
        military departments to carry out construction projects under 
        the program under this section.
    (d) Report Required.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall 
        submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the 
        program under this section.
            (2) Elements.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include a list and description of the construction projects 
        carried out under the program under this section, including the 
        location and cost of each project.
    (e) Expiration of Authority.--The authority to carry out a minor 
military construction project under the program under this section 
expires on the date that is 10 years after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
    (f) Construction of Authority.--Nothing in this section may be 
construed to limit any other authority provided by law for a military 
construction project at a child development center.
    (g) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Child development center.--The term ``child development 
        center'' includes a facility, and the utilities to support such 
        facility, the function of which is to support the daily care of 
        children aged six weeks old through five years old for full-
        day, part-day, and hourly service.
            (2) Congressional defense committees.--The term 
        ``congressional defense committees'' has the meaning given that 
        term in section 101(a)(16) of title 10, United States Code.
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