[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7001 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7001
To amend the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 to
improve access to high-quality early learning and child care for low-
income children and working families, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 23, 2008
Ms. Baldwin introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and Labor, 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 jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 to
improve access to high-quality early learning and child care for low-
income children and working families, 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 ``Starting Early Starting Right Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Children in child care learn and develop skills they
need to succeed in school and in life. Child care is also
fundamental to helping families get ahead by giving parents the
support and peace of mind they need to be productive at work.
(2) Child care teachers and providers carry the
responsibility of providing a safe, nurturing, and stimulating
setting for children entrusted to them each day.
(3) In 2006, the average wage for a child care worker was
$9.05 per hour or $18,820 annually. For full-time, full-year
work this is only slightly above the 2006 poverty guidelines of
$16,600 for a mother with 2 children.
(4) As a result of low wages and limited benefits, many
child care providers do not work for long periods in the child
care field. Only 65 percent of those employed in the child care
field in 2005 were still working in child care in 2006. Such
high turnover rates deny children consistent and stable
relationships with their teachers.
(5) Current reimbursement rates for child care providers
receiving Federal funds are insufficient to recruit and retain
qualified child care providers and to ensure high-quality early
care and education services for children.
(6) Research shows that high-quality child care helps low-
income children enter school ready to succeed. One study found
that children who had enrolled in high-quality child care
demonstrated greater mathematical ability and thinking and
attention skills, and experienced fewer behavior problems than
other children in second grade. Effects were particularly
strong for low-income children.
(7) Millions of low-income children could benefit from
high-quality child care. In 2007, 10,500,000 children under age
6 (43 percent) lived in low-income families (families with
incomes below 200 percent of poverty).
(8) Inadequate funding has reduced the number of children
with access to child care. Only about 1 in 7 eligible children
receives Federal child care assistance.
(9) Many women work in low-wage jobs and cannot cover the
cost of child care. For example, two-thirds of working poor
families headed by single mothers who paid for child care spent
at least 40 percent of their cash income on child care.
(10) Problems with child care can make it difficult for
parents, particularly low-income parents, to work, causing them
to lose wages, be denied a promotion, or lose their jobs.
(11) Research shows that single mothers and former welfare
recipients who received child care assistance were much more
likely to remain employed after 2 years than those who did not
receive child care assistance.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to improve--
(1) access to high-quality early learning and child care
for low-income children and working families; and
(2) the quality of child care and the number of high-
quality child care providers.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO THE CHILD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT ACT OF
1990.
(a) Establishment of Program.--Section 658C of the Child Care and
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858a) is amended to
read as follows:
``SEC. 658C. ESTABLISHMENT OF BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM AND OFFICE OF CHILD
CARE.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary is authorized to make grants to
States in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter.
``(b) Office of Child Care.--
``(1) In general.--There shall be established within the
Administration for Children and Families, an Office of Child
Care to serve as the principal advisor to the Assistant
Secretary for Children and Families on issues regarding State
funded child care programs.
``(2) Primary responsibilities.--The Office of Child Care
shall have primary responsibility for the operation of all
child care programs authorized or funded under part A of title
IV of the Social Security Act.
``(3) Additional responsibilities.--The Office of Child
Care shall have the following responsibilities:
``(A) Developing legislative, regulatory, and
budgetary proposals for the Secretary.
``(B) Presenting operational planning objectives
and initiatives related to child care to the Secretary.
``(C) Overseeing the progress of approved
activities.
``(D) Providing leadership and coordination for
child care, early childhood development, and school-age
programs within the Administration for Children and
Families.
``(E) Providing leadership and linkages with other
agencies on child care issues including agencies within
the Department of Health and Human Services, relevant
agencies across the Federal, State, local governments
and tribal governments, and non-government
organizations at the Federal, State and local
levels.''.
(b) Application and Plan.--Section 658E(c) of the Child Care and
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858c(c)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (E)--
(i) redesignating clause (ii) as clause
(iii); and
(ii) by inserting after clause (i), the
following:
``(ii) Site visits.--Certify that the State
has in effect licensing requirements applicable
to child care providers within the State that
include one annual announced and one annual
unannounced visit to each site at which the
provider provides child care services. Nothing
in the preceding sentence shall be construed to
require that licensing requirements be applied
to specific types of providers of child care
services.
``(iii) Training.--Certify that the State
has in effect licensing or registration
requirements applicable to child care providers
within the State that require, within 3 years
of the date of enactment of the Starting Early
Starting Right Act, that every lead teacher or
aide of the provider, and each family child
care provider--
``(I) have at least 40 hours of
appropriate health, safety, and child
development training prior to their
employment with or operation as a
provider (as determined in accordance
with guidelines to be issued by the
Secretary); and
``(II) have at least 24 hours of
annual training in appropriate health,
safety, and child development training
(as determined in accordance with
guidelines to be issued by the
Secretary).
``(iv) Other training.--Certify that the
State has a plan to implement, within 3 years
of the date of enactment of the Starting Early
Starting Right Act, pre- and in-service
training requirements applicable to child care
providers that provide services for which
assistance is made available under this
subchapter.
``(v) Training for limited-english-
proficient (lep) providers.--Certify that the
State has a plan to provide for the training of
child care service providers with limited-
English proficiency to provide high-quality
child care services.'';
(B) in subparagraph (H)--
(i) by striking ``Demonstrate the manner''
and inserting the following:
``(i) In general.--Demonstrate the
manner''; and
(ii) by adding at the end the following:
``(iii) Specific needs.--Demonstrate the
manner in which the State will meet the
specific child care needs of low-income and
working families, including--
``(I) the outreach strategies to be
used to reach hard-to-serve children,
including low-income children, English
language learners, children with
special needs, and children in rural
areas;
``(II) the use of contracts with
child care centers, family child care
homes, and organizations that manage
and support family child care networks
to reach hard-to-serve children and
underserved communities;
``(III) the use of pilot or
demonstration projects to increase the
supply of high-quality child care in
underserved communities;
``(IV) the use of pilot or
demonstration projects that demonstrate
effective techniques and approaches of
specialized training for child care
service providers with limited-English
proficiency to improve their ability to
provide high-quality child care
services; and
``(V) the use of pilot or
demonstration projects that demonstrate
effective techniques and approaches of
specialized training for child care
providers working with children with
developmental disabilities.''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(I) Continuous care.--Demonstrate how the State
is implementing practices and procedures to help ensure
that children receive continuous care from the same
provider, including through--
``(i) the use of contracts with child care
centers, family child care homes, and
organizations that manage and support family
child care networks for underserved
populations;
``(ii) extending periods of redetermination
for all families to 1 year;
``(iii) extending periods of job search
eligibility; and
``(iv) informing families and providers
that eligibility is ending in a timely manner
and in multiple formats.''; and
(2) in paragraph (4)--
(A) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as
subparagraph (D); and
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (A), the
following:
``(B) In general.--The State plan shall provide
information demonstrating that the State is ensuring
that payment rates for the provision of child care
services for which assistance is provided under this
subchapter are equal to or exceed the 75th percentile
of the current market rate for all types of child care,
based on a research-based market rate survey that
includes variations for geography, age of children, and
provider type.
``(C) Child care for special populations.--The
State plan shall describe efforts to address the need
for child care for special populations, including care
in low-income and rural areas, care for infants and
toddlers, care for children with special needs, care
for other populations, and care during nonstandard
hours, such as paying rates for the provision of child
care services for which assistance is provided under
this subchapter that exceed the 75th percentile of a
current market rate for all types of care (based on the
survey under subparagraph (B).''.
(c) Activities To Improve the Quality of Child Care.--Section 658G
of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.
9858e) is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 658G. ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF CHILD CARE.
``(a) In General.--A State that receives funding to carry out this
subchapter for a fiscal year, shall use not less than 15 percent of the
amount of such funds for activities that are designed to improve the
quality of child care, including the implementation of 1 or more of the
following:
``(1) Developing and implementing a Quality Rating and
Improvement System (referred to in this section as the `QRIS')
for child care centers and family child care homes, including
criteria appropriate for each age group eligible for assistance
under this Act with levels that lead to nationally recognized
high standards.
``(2) Providing assistance for education, training, and
compensation initiatives to assist child care providers in
meeting and maintaining the criteria for achieving
progressively higher rating levels under the QRIS.
``(3) Providing grants and other types of assistance,
including mentoring, to assist child care providers in meeting
and maintaining the criteria for achieving progressively higher
rating levels under the QRIS.
``(4) Maintaining a Statewide network of child care
resource and referral programs.
``(5) Inspecting and monitoring child care programs.
``(6) Providing grants to assist child care providers,
including those who are limited-English-proficient, in becoming
licensed or regulated and in meeting pre-service and ongoing
training requirements.
``(7) Offering other assistance to child care providers to
strengthen the quality of child care, including support for
education and training initiatives tied to compensation.
``(8) Providing grants to assist child care providers who
are not required to be licensed or registered in receiving
appropriate training and support.
``(9) Developing and implementing technological resources
to assist low-income families in applying for child care
assistance as well as to educate families concerning the range
of and quality ratings of various child care providers.
``(b) Extension for Full-Day Care.--A State that receives funding
to carry out this subchapter for a fiscal year, shall use not less than
5 percent of the amount of such funds for activities that are designed
to fund activities to extend the day or year for those children who are
eligible for child care services and attend part-day or year programs.
``(c) High-Quality Care for Infants and Toddlers.--A State that
receives funding to carry out this subchapter for a fiscal year, shall
use not less than 30 percent of the amount of such funds for activities
that are designed to fund initiatives to improve the quality and expand
the availability of high-quality care for infants and toddlers.''.
(d) Reporting Requirements.--Section 658K(a) of the Child Care and
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858i(a)) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(3) Bi-annual reports.--Not later than December 31, 2008,
and every 2 years thereafter, a State that operates a Quality
Rating and Improvement System (referred to in this section as
the `QRIS') shall prepare and submit to the Secretary a report
that includes aggregate data concerning--
``(A) the number of licensed center and family
child care providers in the State;
``(B) the number of child care providers in each
level of the State QRIS, listed by type, race and
ethnicity, geographic area of the State, and number of
children that each such provider is licensed to serve;
``(C) the disaggregated number and percentages of
children receiving child care assistance under this
subchapter in each level of the State QRIS;
``(D) whether any change occurred in the number and
percentage of child care providers in each level of the
State QRIS, listed by type, geographic area of the
State, and number of children each such provider is
licensed to serve;
``(E) the disaggregated number and percentage of
children receiving child care assistance under this
subchapter who are receiving care from child care
providers in a higher-quality level (as determined
under the State QRIS) as compared to the previous 12-
month period;
``(F) the disaggregated number of child care
providers in low-income communities who have moved up
to a higher-quality level of child care (as determined
under the State QRIS) as compared to the previous 12-
month period; and
``(G) the average child care reimbursement rate
under this subchapter at each level of the State QRIS,
listed by provider type, race and ethnicity, and
geographic area of the State.
``(4) 5-year report.--Not later than December 31, 2013, and
every 5 years thereafter, a State described in paragraph (1)(A)
shall prepare and submit to the Secretary a report that
includes aggregate data concerning the average individual
compensation paid for each of the following in all licensed
child care programs, disaggregated by race, ethnicity,
credentials, and program type in the State:
``(A) Lead teacher.
``(B) Classroom assistant or aide.
``(C) Family child care provider.
``(D) Family child care assistant.''.
SEC. 4. AMENDMENT TO THE TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES PROGRAM
UNDER PART A OF TITLE IV OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT.
Section 418(a)(3) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 618(a)(3))
is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``through 2010.'' and
inserting ``through 2008; and''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(H) the amount appropriate for fiscal year 2008
increased by $10,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2009 through 2014.''.
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