Title: Child Care Protection Improvement Act of 2019
Policy area: Families

Summary:
Child Care Protection Improvement Act of 2019This bill establishes an interagency task force, chaired by the Administration for Children and Families, to support states in conducting required criminal background checks for childcare staff members. Specifically, the task force must consult with relevant state agencies and develop recommendations and best practices. This includes evaluating how agencies are responding to interstate requests for information about staff, or prospective staff, who have lived in another state within the preceding five years. The task force must submit a final report with its recommendations within one year of the first meeting of the task force.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3986 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3986

 To establish a task force to improve child care protections provided 
             through interstate criminal background checks.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 25, 2019

 Mrs. McBath (for herself, Mr. Taylor, Mrs. Axne, Mr. Keller, and Ms. 
 Finkenauer) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish a task force to improve child care protections provided 
             through interstate criminal background checks.

    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 ``Child Care Protection Improvement 
Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. TASK FORCE TO ASSIST IN IMPLEMENTING INTERSTATE CRIMINAL 
              BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR CHILD CARE STAFF MEMBERS.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established in the Department of 
Health and Human Services a task force, to be known as the Interagency 
Task Force for Child Safety (referred to in this section as the ``Task 
Force''), to identify, evaluate, and recommend best practices and 
technical assistance to assist Federal and State agencies in fully 
implementing the requirements of section 658H(b) of the Child Care and 
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858f(b)) for child care 
staff members.
    (b) Composition.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall appoint the members of the 
Task Force which shall include--
            (1) the Director of the Office of Child Care of the 
        Department of Health and Human Services, the Associate 
        Commissioner of the Children's Bureau of the Department of 
        Health and Human Services, the Director of the Federal Bureau 
        of Investigation, or their respective designees; and
            (2) such other Federal officials as may be designated by 
        the President.
    (c) Chairperson.--The chairperson of the Task Force shall be the 
Assistant Secretary of the Administration for Children and Families of 
the Department of Health and Human Services.
    (d) Consultation.--The Task Force shall consult with 
representatives from State child care agencies, State child protective 
services, State criminal justice agencies, providers of child care 
services, including those in the private sector, and other relevant 
stakeholders on identifying problems in implementing, and proposing 
solutions to implement, the requirements of section 658H(b) of the 
Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858f(b)) 
as described in such section. Such consultation shall include State 
agencies that have been able to implement such requirements as well as 
State agencies that have not.
    (e) Task Force Duties.--The Task Force shall--
            (1) develop recommendations for improving implementation of 
        the requirements of section 658H(b) of the Child Care and 
        Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858f(b)), 
        including recommendations about how the member agencies of the 
        Task Force will collaborate and coordinate efforts to implement 
        such requirements; and
            (2) develop recommendations that identify best practices 
        and evaluate technical assistance to assist relevant Federal 
        and State agencies in implementing section 658H(b) of the Child 
        Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
        9858f(b)), which identification and evaluation shall include--
                    (A) an analysis of available research and 
                information at the Federal, State, and local levels 
                regarding the status of the interstate requirements of 
                such section for child care staff members who have 
                resided in one or more States during the previous 5 
                years and who seek employment in a child care program 
                in a different State;
                    (B) a list of State agencies that are not 
                responding to interstate requests covered by such 
                section for relevant information on child care staff 
                members, and why they are not responding if aware of 
                such requests;
                    (C) identification of the challenges State agencies 
                are experiencing in responding to such interstate 
                requests;
                    (D) an analysis of the length of time it takes the 
                State agencies in a State to receive such results from 
                State agencies in another State in response to such an 
                interstate request in accordance with such section;
                    (E) an analysis of the average processing time for 
                the interstate requests, after such response has been 
                received, in accordance with such section;
                    (F) identification of the fees and work burden 
                associated with the interstate requests in each State 
                to meet requirements in accordance with such section, 
                including information regarding who pays the fees and 
                whether and how the cost of the fees may be changed;
                    (G) a list of States that are participating in the 
                National Fingerprint File program, as administered by 
                the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and an analysis of 
                reasons States have or have not chosen to participate 
                in the program, including barriers to participation 
                such as barriers related to State regulatory 
                requirements and statutes; and
                    (H) a list of States that have closed record laws 
                or systems that prevent the States from sharing 
                complete criminal records data or information with 
                State agencies in another State.
    (f) Meetings.--Not later than 3 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Task Force shall hold its first meeting.
    (g) Final Report.--Not later than 1 year after the first meeting of 
the Task Force, the Task Force shall submit to the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services, the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions of the Senate, and the Committee on Education and Labor of the 
House of Representatives a final report containing all of the 
recommendations required by subsection (e).
    (h) Sunset.--The Task Force shall terminate 1 year after submitting 
its final report under subsection (g), but not later than September 30, 
2021.
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