This bill addresses child care challenges facing military families by making several operational and policy changes to Department of Defense child care programs. The legislation expands who can work in military child development centers by removing prior military service requirements and allowing national service volunteers to be placed in these positions. It establishes a preclearance background check process for child care employees that is valid for up to one year with annual reverification, allowing qualified individuals to be cleared before a specific job opening exists. The bill authorizes job-sharing arrangements where two part-time employees can share one full-time child care position, and permits child care workers to receive limited benefits like commissary access, fitness center use, and tuition assistance to help with recruitment and retention. Additionally, the law requires the Defense Department to create a unified data system to track child care capacity, workforce needs, and waitlists across all military installations, with quarterly updates and annual briefings to Congress, while also requiring reports on current child care waitlists and how availability affects military readiness, with implementation beginning within 90 to 180 days of enactment.
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