PROSPECT Act

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1630 To establish competitive Federal grants that will empower community colleges and minority-serving institutions to become incubators for infant and toddler child care talent, training, and access on their campuses and in their communities, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 17, 2023 Mrs. HAYES (for herself and Mr. NORCROSS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider- ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To establish competitive Federal grants that will empower community colleges and minority-serving institutions to become incubators for infant and toddler child care tal- ent, training, and access on their campuses and in their communities, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1630 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Preparing and 2 Resourcing Our Student Parents and Early Childhood 3 Teachers Act’’ or the ‘‘PROSPECT Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 5 The table of contents of this Act is as follows: 6 Sec. 1. Short title. Sec. 2. Table of contents. Sec. 3. Findings. TITLE I—ESTABLISHMENT OF INFANT AND TODDLER CHILD CARE LEADERSHIP GRANTS Sec. 101. Purpose. Sec. 102. Definitions. Sec. 103. Authorization of appropriations. Subtitle A—General Provisions Sec. 111. Program authorized. Sec. 112. Application; selection criteria. Sec. 113. Amount, duration, and administration of grants. Subtitle B—Planning and Implementation Grants Sec. 121. Grants authorized. Sec. 122. Planning grants. Sec. 123. Access grants providing infant and toddler child care for community college or minority-serving institution student parents. Sec. 124. Impact grants. Sec. 125. Pipeline grants. Sec. 126. Evaluation criteria for grants. Sec. 127. Report to Congress. Sec. 128. Nondiscrimination in programs and activities. TITLE II—CHILD CARE AND DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM Sec. 201. Eligibility. Sec. 202. Conforming amendments. Sec. 203. Increased Federal matching payments for child care. TITLE III—OUTREACH REGARDING THE DEPENDENT CARE ALLOWANCE FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID Sec. 301. Sharing dependent care allowance information for Federal student aid. VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1630 IH SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 1 Congress finds the following: 2 (1) A child’s brain grows at a faster rate be- 3 tween birth and age 3 than at any later point in the 4 child’s lifetime. 5 (2) Decades of research shows that children 6 under age 3 that receive quality child care are more 7 likely to have the behavioral, cognitive, and language 8 skills development necessary for success in school, 9 college, and life. 10 (3) According to a 2018 survey, 83 percent of 11 parents with a child under age 5 responded that 12 finding quality, affordable child care was a serious 13 problem in their area. 14 (4) In 2017, on average, center-based child care 15 for an infant cost 61 percent more than for a pre- 16 schooler, over $11,000 annually per child, and in 28 17 States, more than the cost of public college tuition. 18 (5) In the 2015–2016 academic year, approxi- 19 mately 4,300,000 postsecondary education students 20 were raising children while in college, and over half 21 of those students had children preschool-aged or 22 younger. 23 (6) According to a 2016 survey, 95 percent of 24 child care centers at 2-year and 4-year colleges 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1630 IH across the United States had a waiting list, with the 1 average list containing 82 children. 2 (7) Student parents were 20 percent more likely 3 to leave college without a degree than students with- 4 out children. 5 (8) The Child Care Access Means Parents in 6 School Federal Grant program under subpart 7 of 7 part A of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 8 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070e et seq.) helps over 3,300 9 students at institutions of higher education afford 10 child care each year, but this program impacts just 11 0.5 percent of the entire student parent population, 12 and many institutions of higher education do not 13 open their subsidized child care programs to children 14 under age 3. 15 (9) The share of community colleges and 4-year 16 institutions of higher education with on-campus 17 child care has been in decline. Community colleges 18 saw a 10 percent decrease in the number of cam- 19 puses with child care between 2002 and 2017. 20 (10) Student parents are more likely to be en- 21 rolled at community colleges and minority-serving 22 institutions than other institutions of higher edu- 23 cation. Over a quarter of all community college stu- 24 dents are parents, and in the 2015–2016 academic 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1630 IH year, 40 percent of Black women attending college 1 were parents, 3 times the rate for White male col- 2 lege students. 3 (11) Community colleges and minority-serving 4 institutions lead the higher education sector in edu- 5 cating infant and toddler child care providers, espe- 6 cially child care providers of color, so they are the 7 optimal actors for driving quality infant and toddler 8 child care access in their regions. 9 TITLE I—ESTABLISHMENT OF IN- 10 FANT AND TODDLER CHILD 11 CARE LEADERSHIP GRANTS 12 SEC. 101. PURPOSE. 13 The purposes of this title are to expand access to in- 14 fant and toddler child care for children of students at pub- 15 lic community colleges and at minority-serving institutions 16 and to grow, diversify, and strengthen the workforce pipe- 17 line of highly effective infant and toddler child care pro- 18 viders, especially in communities of color and infant and 19 toddler child care deserts. 20 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. 21 In this title: 22 (1) COMMUNITY COLLEGE.—The term ‘‘commu- 23 nity college’’ means a public institution of higher 24 education, as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1630 IH Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)), that 1 provides an educational program of not less than 2 2 years that culminates in an associate degree and is 3 acceptable for full credit toward a baccalaureate de- 4 gree. 5 (2) COMMUNITY COLLEGE OR MINORITY-SERV- 6 ING INSTITUTION STUDENT PARENT.—The term 7 ‘‘community college or minority-serving institution 8 student parent’’ means an individual who— 9 (A) is a parent or legal guardian of a child 10 who qualifies for infant and toddler child care; 11 and 12 (B) is a full-time or part-time student at 13 a community college or minority-serving institu- 14 tion participating in an eligible entity. 15 (3) CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING.—The 16 term ‘‘culturally responsive teaching’’ means teach- 17 ing— 18 (A) using the cultural characteristics, expe- 19 riences, and perspectives of ethnically diverse 20 students as conduits for teaching them more ef- 21 fectively; and 22 (B) based on understanding the influences 23 of race, culture, and ethnicity in teaching and 24 learning and using the cultural experiences and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1630 IH contributions of different ethnic groups as in- 1 strumental tools for teaching academic and so- 2 cial knowledge and skills. 3 (4) DROP-IN.—The term ‘‘drop-in’’, when used 4 with respect to child care— 5 (A) means child care that— 6 (i) does not require prescheduling a 7 definite number of scheduled days or hours 8 per week; or 9 (ii) is short term, such as less than 5 10 hours per day; and 11 (B) includes child care described in sub- 12 paragraph (A) that requires parents to provide 13 24-hour notice before using the child care or 14 provides child care subject to availability. 15 (5) DUAL LANGUAGE LEARNER.—The term 16 ‘‘dual language learner’’ means a child who— 17 (A) is acquiring 2 or more languages at 18 the same time; or 19 (B) is learning a second language while 20 continuing to develop the child’s first language, 21 including a child who may also be identified by 22 a State or locality as bilingual or limited 23 English proficient or as an English language 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1630 IH learner, an English learner, or a child who 1 speaks a language other than English. 2 (6) EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATOR PREPARA- 3 TION PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘early childhood educa- 4 tor preparation program’’ means a postsecondary 5 course of study that— 6 (A) is designed to prepare individuals to 7 teach in early childhood settings serving chil- 8 dren between birth and age 5; and 9 (B) leads to a degree (including an associ- 10 ate’s, bachelor’s, or graduate degree) or a State 11 or nationally recognized credential enabling in- 12 dividuals to teach in early childhood settings, 13 including a child development associate creden- 14 tial or a State teaching license. 15 (7) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti- 16 ty’’ means— 17 (A) a community college; 18 (B) a minority-serving institution; or 19 (C) a consortium of 2 or more community 20 colleges or minority-serving institutions. 21 (8) FLEX INFANT AND TODDLER CHILD 22 CARE.—The term ‘‘flex infant and toddler child 23 care’’ means infant and toddler child care for which 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1630 IH a child is registered to attend weekly, but for a total 1 of less than five days per week. 2 (9) HIGH SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘high school’’ 3 has the meaning given the term in section 8101 of 4 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 5 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 6 (10) INFANT AND TODDLER CHILD CARE.—The 7 term ‘‘infant and toddler child care’’ means child 8 care for children who are under the age of 3 as of 9 the first day of the academic year of the applicable 10 community college or minority-serving institution. 11 (11) INFANT AND TODDLER CHILD CARE 12 DESERT.—The term ‘‘infant and toddler child care 13 desert’’ means a community that the State or tribal 14 entity involved determines has a low supply of qual- 15 ity, affordable infant and toddler child care. 16 (12) INFANT OR TODDLER WITH A DIS- 17 ABILITY.—The term ‘‘infant or toddler with a dis- 18 ability’’ has the meaning given the term in section 19 632 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education 20 Act (20 U.S.C. 1432). 21 (13) LOW-INCOME.—The term ‘‘low-income’’ 22 means an individual from a family with an income 23 at or below 150 percent of the poverty line (as de- 24 fined by the Office of Management and Budget and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1630 IH revised annually in accordance with section 673(2) 1 of the Community Services Block Grant Act) appli- 2 cable to a family of the size involved. 3 (14) MINORITY-SERVING INSTITUTION.—The 4 term ‘‘minority-serving institution’’ means an insti- 5 tution described in section 371(a) of the Higher 6 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)). 7 (15) NONTRADITIONAL HOURS.—The term 8 ‘‘nontraditional hours’’ means— 9 (A) the hours before 9 a.m. and after 4 10 p.m.; and 11 (B) any hours during weekends, breaks 12 during the academic year, and holidays. 13 (16) ON-CAMPUS.—The term ‘‘on-campus’’, 14 when used with respect to a childcare center, means 15 a childcare center that is located on the campus of 16 a community college or minority-serving institution. 17 (17) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 18 means the Secretary of Education. 19 (18) SERVICE AREA.—The term ‘‘service area’’, 20 when used with respect to an eligible entity, means 21 the area served by the eligible entity. 22 (19) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean- 23 ing given the term in section 103 of the Higher 24 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 1630 IH SEC. 103. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 1 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 2 this title a total of $9,000,000,000 for fiscal years 2024 3 through 2028. 4 Subtitle A—General Provisions 5 SEC. 111. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available 7 under section 103, the Secretary shall award to eligible 8 entities— 9 (1) planning grants under section 122; 10 (2) access grants under section 123, which will 11 provide free high-quality child care for as many as 12 500,000 infants and toddlers who have a community 13 college or minority-serving institution student par- 14 ent, helping to reduce barriers that impact the abil- 15 ity of community college or minority-serving institu- 16 tion student parents attending community college or 17 a minority-serving institution to graduate, and re- 18 ducing their postgraduation debt; 19 (3) impact grants under section 124, which will 20 expand the supply and quality of child care in the 21 community by providing training, mentorship, tech- 22 nical support, and expansion funding to new and ex- 23 isting child care providers in the service area of the 24 eligible entity; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:50 Mar 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1630.IH H1630 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 1630 IH (4) pipeline grants under section 125, which 1 will fund eligible entities to— 2 (A) launch and expand early childhood ed- 3 ucator preparation programs; and 4 (B) form strategic partnerships with re- 5 gional institutions to expand, diversify, and 6 strengthen the workforce pipeline for infant and 7 toddler care providers. 8 (b) ADMINISTR [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]