The Rural Child Care Access Act would authorize the Department of Health and Human Services to award grants to child care facilities in small towns and rural areas with fewer than 50,000 residents to pay for infrastructure projects like building, upgrading, or modifying child care facilities. Eligible projects must directly support improved child care services, training and development of child care providers, recruitment and retention of providers, or community engagement, with individual grants capped at $4 million. The bill would provide $250 million annually in funding for fiscal years 2027 through 2029, and requires the Secretary to issue program guidance within 120 days of enactment, ensure grants are distributed equitably across regions, and report to Congress every two years on project progress and community impacts. The legislation also directs the department to conduct ongoing research on the construction and renovation needs of child care facilities nationwide.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.