Sponsors (12)
The bill directs substantial new federal resources to expand child care supply, workforce support, and targeted services—improving access and equity for families and vulnerable children—while increasing federal spending and adding administrative and allocation complexities that may strain state budgets and reduce some flexible funding.
Parents and children in low- and middle-income families gain significantly expanded access to subsidized child care through a large influx of federal funding (a $20 billion baseline with inflation indexing plus a $5 billion annual competitive grant program), increasing affordability and capacity.
Child care workers and providers receive targeted support (wage supplements, bonuses, professional development), improving recruitment, retention, and quality of care.
Children with higher needs (infants/toddlers, dual-language learners, children with disabilities, homeless and foster children) get prioritized access to services, improving equity for vulnerable populations.
U.S. taxpayers face materially higher federal spending obligations because the bill increases annual federal outlays (the $20 billion baseline plus $5 billion grants), which may require offsets or add to budgetary pressure.
States, territories, and tribal lead agencies will face increased administrative complexity and compliance costs from new application, planning, reporting, evaluation, and integration requirements.
State budgets may be pressured by maintenance-of-effort or minimum general revenue requirements, potentially crowding out other state priorities or requiring additional state spending.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Appropriates $20B/year (FY2026, CPI‑indexed) for the Child Care Entitlement and creates a separate $5B/year grant program to expand workforce, supply, quality, and access.
Introduced April 3, 2025 by Ronald Lee Wyden · Last progress April 3, 2025
Provides large, new federal funding for child care starting in fiscal year 2026: a $20 billion annual appropriation (indexed to CPI-U thereafter) for the Child Care Entitlement to States and a separate $5 billion annual grant program to boost child care workforce, supply, quality, and access. The bill sets specific percentage set‑asides for Indian tribes/tribal organizations, U.S. territories, technical assistance, evaluation, and limited HHS administrative costs; it also requires funds be integrated into state CCDBG systems and includes allocation rules and a redistribution mechanism for unused tribal funds. Effective October 1, 2025, for FY2026 funding.