H.R. 2282

119th CONGRESS 1st Session

To reauthorize the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990, to improve access to relative caregivers, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES · March 24, 2025 · Sponsor: Mr. Moore of West Virginia

H.R. 2282

SEC. 1. Short title

This Act may be cited as the Respect Parents’ Childcare Choices Act.

SEC. 2. Amendments to the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990

(a) Authorization of appropriations
- Section 658B of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended by striking this subchapterand all that follows and inserting the following: . 42 U.S.C. 9858
- Authorization of appropriations
(b) Application and plan
- Section 658E(c) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858c(c)
  - in paragraph (2)—
    - (A) Parental choice of providers
      - Provide assurances that—
        
        (i) the parent or parents of each eligible child within the State, who receives or is offered child care services for which financial assistance is provided under this subchapter, are given the option to receive a child care certificate as defined in section 658P(2); and
        
        (ii) all direct services authorized in this subchapter will be provided via child care certificates.
    - by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the following:
    - in subparagraph (F)—
      - (i) in clause (i), by inserting after ; and
      - (ii) in clause (ii), by inserting after ;
    - in subparagraph (G)—
      - (i) in clause (i)—
      - in the first sentence, by inserting after ; and
      - in the second sentence, by inserting before the period; and
      - (ii) in clause (ii)(I), by striking ;
    - in subparagraph (K)(i)(II)—
      - (i) in item (aa), by inserting before the semicolon; and
      - (ii) in item (bb), by inserting after ;
      - Nothing in this subchapter shall be construed to imply that States are required to provide a portion of the delivery of direct services through grants or contracts.
    - in subparagraph (M), by adding at the end the following flush sentence:
    - in subparagraph (N)—
      - (i) by striking and all that precedes clause (i) and inserting the following:
        
        (N) Protection for working and newly married parents
      - (ii) in clause (i)(I)—
      - by striking ; and
      - by striking of the same sizeand inserting with the same number of children and parents as prescribed in section 658P(4);
      - (iii) in clause (iii)—
      - by inserting before the following:
        
        The plan shall certify that the State will not terminate assistance provided to carry out this subchapter based on a factor consisting of an unmarried parent's marriage which causes the family income to rise above the State median income for a family with the same number of children and parents as prescribed in section 658P(4), without continuing the assistance for at least 6 months after such marriage.
      - by adding at the end the following:
      - (iv) in clause (iv)—
      - by striking and inserting the following: “for children of—
        
        parents
      - by striking and inserting the following: “the State median income for a family with the same number of children and parents as prescribed in section 658P(4); or
        
        parents who married following the initial determination or most recent redetermination whose family income now exceeds the State’s income limit to qualify for such assistance due to the addition of their spouse’s income.
      - (W) Notification of program coverage for relative caregivers
        
        The plan shall certify that the State will—
        
        (i) clearly post on the State’s website described in subparagraph (E)(III); and
        
        (ii) annually notify the parents of each eligible child receiving a child care certificate under this subchapter that such certificates may be used—
        
        as a payment to a relative caregiver including the child’s grandparent, great grandparent, adult sibling, aunt, or uncle; or
        
        as a disbursement to married parents in which at least one parent is acting as a relative caregiver to the parent’s own eligible child, so long as such families are in compliance with the income and work requirements described in section 658P(4)(C)(iii).
      - (X) Review of requirements on relative caregivers
        
        The plan shall include certification that the State will (at least once every 5 years) review State and local regulations, requirements, and licensing standards applicable to relative caregivers to identify burdensome or redundant requirements that are unnecessary to protect the health and safety of children and that—
        
        (i) limit or lower the number of relative caregivers who care for eligible children under this subchapter; or
        
        (ii) prevent parents from choosing to have a relative caregiver provide childcare for their eligible child.
    - by adding at the end the following:
  - in paragraph (3)(E)(ii), by striking 70 percent to fund direct services (provided by the State) in accordance with paragraph (2)(A)and inserting 90 percent to fund direct services (provided by the State) via child care certificates; and
  - in paragraph (4)—
    - by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (D); and
    - by inserting after subparagraph (B), the following:
      - (C) Payment rate
        
        The State plan shall certify that the payment rate to relative caregivers is not less than 75 percent of the rate for family child care providers for children of the same age and in the same geographic location.
(c) Limitations
- Section 658F(b)(2) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858d(b)(2)
  - in the paragraph heading, by striking and inserting ; and
  - by striking sectarianand inserting religious.
(d) Improving the quality of child care
- Section 658G of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858e
  - (2) Amount of reservations
    - Such State shall reserve and use—
      - not more than 9 percent of the funds described in paragraph (1) each year to carry out the activities described in paragraph (1); and
      - in addition to the funds reserved under subparagraph (A), 3 percent of the funds described in paragraph (1) to carry out the activities described in paragraph (1) and subsection (b)(4), as such activities relate to the quality of care for infants and toddlers.
  - in subsection (a), by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) and inserting the following:
  - in subsection (b)(1)—
    - in subparagraph (F), by adding at the end; and
    - in subparagraph (G), by striking and inserting a period; and; and
    - by striking subparagraph (H).
(e) Reports
- Section 658K(a) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858i(a)
  - in paragraph (1)(B)(vii), by striking home careand inserting in-home care; and
  - in paragraph (2)(C), by striking .
(f) Hotline and Website
- Section 658L(b)(2)(B) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858j(b)(2)(B)
  - in clause (iv), by striking and at the end;
  - in clause (v), by striking the period and inserting ; and; and
    - (vi) notice that the parents of eligible children may use child care certificates—
    - as a payment to a relative caregiver including the child’s grandparent, great grandparent, adult sibling, aunt, or uncle; or
    - as a disbursement to married parents in which at least one parent is acting as a relative caregiver to the parent’s own eligible child, so long as such families are in compliance with the income and work requirements described in section 658P(4)(C)(iii).
  - by adding at the end the following:
(g) Sectarian activities
- Section 658M of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858k
  - by striking subsection (a); and
  - by striking and inserting .
(h) Nondiscrimination
- Section 658N of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended — 42 U.S.C. 9858l
  - in subsection (a)—
    - in paragraph (1)(B), by striking sectarianand inserting religious;
    - in paragraph (3)—
      - (i) by striking subparagraph (A); and
      - (ii) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively; and
      - (4) Protections for Religious Child Care Providers
        
        (A) In general
        
        A State receiving funds under this subchapter shall ensure that—
        
        (i) in licensing child care providers, the State shall not impose any requirement on a religious organization that results in the imposition of a greater burden on the religious organization when compared to the related burden imposed on any private nonreligious organization;
        
        (ii) in licensing child care providers, the State shall not impose a requirement on a religious organization to provide or comply with any document, agreement, covenant, memorandum of understanding, policy, or regulation, or to provide an assurance or notice, unless the State also imposes that requirement on nonreligious organizations; and
        
        (iii) a religious organization receiving funds under this subchapter that provides child care services shall retain its independence from State and local governments, including retaining the autonomy, right of expression, religious character or affiliation, authority over internal governance, or other aspects of the independence of such organization.
        
        (B) Requirements
        
        A religious organization receiving funds under this subchapter that provides child care services may—
        
        (i) retain religious terms in the organization's name;
        
        (ii) continue to carry out the organization's mission, including the definition, development, practice, and expression of its religious beliefs;
        
        (iii) use the organization's facilities to provide a program without concealing, removing, or altering religious art, icons, scriptures, or other symbols from the facilities;
        
        (iv) select, promote, or dismiss the members of the organization’s governing body, and the organization’s employees, on the basis of their acceptance of or adherence to the religious tenets of the organization; and
        
        (v) include religious references in the organization's mission statement and other chartering or governing documents.
        
        (C) Religious exemptions
        
        A religious organization’s exemptions, as provided in title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 () (including exemptions from prohibitions of employment discrimination in section 702(a) of that Act ()), title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (), title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (), the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (), the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (), or any other provision in law providing an exemption for a religious organization, shall not be waived because of the religious organization's receipt of funds under this subchapter. 42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 2000e–1(a); 42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.; 20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 2000cc et seq.
        
        (D) Private right of action
        
        Any religious organization that alleges a violation of its rights under this paragraph and seeks to enforce such rights—
        
        (i) may bring an action in a court of competent jurisdiction and assert that violation as a claim, or assert that violation as a defense in a civil action; and
        
        (ii) may obtain appropriate relief, including attorney’s fees, against an entity or agency that committed such violation.
    - by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the following:
  - in subsection (b), by striking each place it appears and inserting religious.
(i) Definitions
- Section 658P of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858n
  - by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
  - in paragraph (4), by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C) and inserting the following:
  - in paragraph (6)—
  - in paragraph (7)—
  - by redesignating paragraphs (8), (9), (10), (11), (12), (13), (14), and (15) as paragraphs (9), (10), (11), (13), (14), (15), (16), and (17), respectively;
  - by inserting after paragraph (7), the following:
  - by inserting after paragraph (11) (as so redesignated), the following:
(j) Parental rights
- Section 658Q of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended— 42 U.S.C. 9858o
  - by striking ; and
  - by striking subsection (b).
(k) Fraud prevention and increased relative caregiving
- The Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 () is amended by adding at the end the following: 42 U.S.C. 9857 et seq.
  - (a) In general
    - Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall establish and implement a 2-year pilot program to award grants to States to increase the State’s ability to—
      - verify that children receiving assistance under this subchapter meet eligibility criteria at the time of eligibility determination and redetermination;
      - prevent payments to ineligible children;
      - verify the relationship of relative caregivers to eligible children;
      - identify cases of fraud and intentional program violation by child care providers; and
      - recover payments that are the result of fraud.
  - (b) Authorization of appropriations
    - There is authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 to carry out this section.
  - (a) In general
    - Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress and make publicly available a report on regulations that prevent family members from acting as relative caregivers to eligible children under this subchapter.
  - (b) Contents
    - The report required under this section shall include the following:
      - A list of the provisions under this subchapter and other Federal laws that decrease the number of relative caregivers.
      - A description of State or local government policies, regulations, or licensing standards that decrease the number of relative caregivers or that place burdensome requirements upon such caregivers beyond basic health and safety requirements.
      - Recommendations and legislative proposals for Congress, State legislatures, and State lead agencies to lessen or remove unnecessary, burdensome regulations that prevent family members (including parents, grandparents, adult siblings, aunts, and uncles) from providing child care for eligible children under this subchapter.
  - (c) Pilot programs
    - Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall establish and implement a 2-year pilot program to award grants to States to carry out innovative State programs to promote child care provided by relative caregivers and to increase the number of relative caregivers providing child care to eligible children under this subchapter.
  - (d) Authorization of appropriations
    - There is authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 to carry out this section.

SEC. 3. Repeal of credit for expenses for household and dependent care services

(a) In general
- Subpart A of part IV of subchapter A of of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking section 21. chapter 1
(b) Conforming amendments
- of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: Section 23(f)(1)
  - (1) Rules for married couples
    - (A) Married couples must file joint return
      - If the taxpayer is married at the close of the taxable year, the credit shall be allowed under subsection (a) only if the taxpayer and his spouse file a joint return for the taxable year.
    - (B) Marital status
      - An individual legally separated from his spouse under a decree of divorce or of separate maintenance shall not be considered as married.
    - (C) Certain married individuals living apart
      - If—
        
        (i) an individual who is married and who files a separate return—
        
        maintains as his home a household which constitutes for more than one-half of the taxable year the principal place of abode of a qualifying individual, and
        
        furnishes over half of the cost of maintaining such household during the taxable year, and
        
        (ii) during the last 6 months of such taxable year such individual's spouse is not a member of such household,
      - such individual shall not be considered as married.
  - (6) Marital status; certain married individuals living apart
    - Rules similar to the rules of subparagraphs (B) and (C) of section 23(f)(1) shall apply for purposes of this section.
- Section 35(g)(6) of such Code is amended to read as follows:
  - (C) Marital status
    - For purposes of this paragraph, marital status shall be determined under the rules of subparagraphs (B) and (C) of section 23(f)(1).
- Section 129(a)(2)(C) of such Code is amended to read as follows:
  - (2) Special rules for spouse who is a student or incapable of caring for self
    - In the case of a spouse who is a student or an individual described in subsection (e)(1)(B)(ii)(III) (determined without regard to the amount of time spent in the taxpayer's household), for purposes of paragraph (1), such spouse shall be deemed for each month during which such spouse is a full-time student at an educational institution, or is an individual so described in subsection (e)(1)(B)(ii)(III), to be gainfully employed and to have earned income of not less than—
      - $250 if there is 1 individual described in subclauses (I) through (III) of subsection (e)(1)(B) with respect to the taxpayer for the taxable year, or
      - $500 if there are 2 or more such individuals with respect to the taxpayer for the taxable year.
    - In the case of any husband and wife, this paragraph shall apply with respect to only one spouse for any month.
- Section 129(b)(2) of such Code is amended to read as follows:
- Section 129(e)(1) of such Code is amended—
  - by striking and inserting the following:
    - (A) In general
      - The term
  - by striking , and
  - by adding at the end the following:
    - (B) Employment-related expenses
      - (i) The term employment-related expenses means amounts paid for the following expenses, but only if such expenses are incurred to enable the taxpayer to be gainfully employed for any period for which there are 1 or more qualifying individuals with respect to the taxpayer:
      - Expenses for household services, and
      - Expenses for the care of a qualifying individual.
      - Such term shall not include any amount paid for services outside the taxpayer's household at a camp where the qualifying individual stays overnight.
      - (ii) Employment-related expenses described in clause (i) which are incurred for services outside the taxpayer's household shall be taken into account only if incurred for the care of—
      - a dependent of the taxpayer (as defined in section 152(a)(1)) who has not attained age 13,
      - a dependent of the taxpayer (as defined in section 152, determined without regard to subsections (b)(1), (b)(2), and (d)(1)(B)) who is physically or mentally incapable of caring for himself or herself, who has the same principal place of abode as the taxpayer for more than one-half of such taxable year, and who regularly spends at least 8 hours each day in the taxpayer's household, or
      - the spouse of the taxpayer, if the spouse is physically or mentally incapable of caring for himself or herself, has the same principal place of abode as the taxpayer for more than one-half of such taxable year, and regularly spends at least 8 hours each day in the taxpayer's household.
      - (iii) Employment-related expenses described in clause (i) which are incurred for services provided outside the taxpayer's household by a dependent care center shall be taken into account only if—
      - such center complies with all applicable laws and regulations of a State or unit of local government, and
      - The requirements of clause (ii) are met.
      - (iv) For purposes of this paragraph, the term dependent care center means any facility which—
      - provides care for more than six individuals (other than individuals who reside at the facility), and
      - receives a fee, payment, or grant for providing services for any of the individuals (regardless of whether such facility is operated for profit).
- Section 213 of such Code is amended by striking subsection (e).
- Section 6213(g)(2) of such Code is amended—
  - in subparagraph (H), by striking , and
  - in subparagraph (L), by striking .
(c) Effective date
- The amendments made by this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act.

H.R. 2282

Table of contents

SEC. 1. Short title

SEC. 2. Amendments to the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990

SEC. 3. Repeal of credit for expenses for household and dependent care services