Sponsor
Janelle S. Bynum
Representative · D-OR
Representative · D-OR
The bill helps semiconductor workforce trainees by funding child care stipends and expanding local child care capacity—especially in investment areas and for underserved groups—but does so with short-term grants, limited geographic reach, added administrative requirements, and modest federal costs that may not sustain long-term support.
Parents enrolled in semiconductor workforce training (including low-income parents) receive monthly child care stipends (at least $500 per dependent) that lower out-of-pocket care costs and are excluded from taxable income and means-tested benefit calculations.
Child care providers in areas with semiconductor investment can get grants to renovate or expand facilities, increasing local child care capacity—especially for infants/toddlers, low-income families, rural communities, and nontraditional hours—where workforce demand rises.
Linking child care support to semiconductor workforce development helps trainees (including veterans and first-generation college students) remain in training and apprenticeships by reducing a key barrier to participation and completion.
Parents and trainees could lose child care support after two-year grant terms end if workforce programs continue and states do not cover the gap, creating discontinuity for families relying on assistance.
Prioritizing funds by geographic diversity and proximity to semiconductor investments may exclude needy areas or providers not near such investments, leaving some low-income and rural families without access.
Requiring prevailing wages on construction projects can raise renovation/expansion costs and reduce the total number of child care facility projects that can be funded from the grant pool.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates two-year competitive grants to states to fund child care stipends and expand child care capacity for individuals in semiconductor workforce programs and in semiconductor investment regions.
Official title: To establish a grant program for States to support individuals participating in semiconductor-related workforce programs, and for other purposes.
Introduced January 22, 2026 by Janelle S. Bynum · Last progress January 22, 2026
Provides two-year, competitive federal grants to states to support child care for people participating in semiconductor-related workforce activities and to expand or improve child care facilities in areas with significant semiconductor investment. Grants prioritize geographically diverse states with major semiconductor investment and require state plans for stipend distribution, provider support, and reporting on impacts. States must use funds to provide monthly child care stipends (minimum $500 per dependent child) paid directly to providers when stipends are offered, prioritize certain participant groups (e.g., first-generation college students, HBCU graduates, rural residents, veterans), and target provider assistance to those serving low-income children, infants and toddlers, operating nontraditional hours, or seeking to expand capacity, among other listed priorities.