A bill to amend the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to make projects that directly or indirectly increase the accessibility of affordable, quality child care eligible for certain grants, and for other purposes.
Affordable Child Care for Economic Strategies and Success Act or the ACCESS Act
This bill authorizes the Department of Commerce to provide grants for public works and economic development projects that will directly or indirectly increase the accessibility of affordable, quality child care, including grants for planning, and training, research, and technical assistance related to such projects.
Commerce must issue regulations to establish criteria for whether a project directly or indirectly increases the accessibility of affordable, quality child care. Such criteria shall consider (1) the availability, validity, and accessibility of timely data, (2) the extent to which a project contributes to a family's financial security, and (3) the extent to which a project addresses child care needs in child care deserts or areas otherwise recognized as experiencing a shortage. A child care desert is an area in which the number of children who are under age five is more than three times the number of slots provided by child care providers who are licensed or registered by the state involved, or a community that the state or tribal entity involved determines has a low supply of quality, affordable child care.
Commerce must also issue guidance on how to include the accessibility of affordable, quality child care in a comprehensive economic development strategy.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
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