S. 4628

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4628 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4628

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish an initiative to 
address the availability, quality, and cost of childcare in rural 
areas, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

May 21, 2026

Mr. Marshall (for himself, Ms. Smith, Ms. Hassan, and Ms. Ernst) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to establish an initiative to 
address the availability, quality, and cost of childcare in rural 
areas, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. EXPANDING CHILDCARE IN RURAL AMERICA INITIATIVE.

(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Childcare.--
(A) In general.--The term ``childcare'' means any 
program that--
(i) provides quality care and early 
education for children who have not yet entered 
first grade; and
(ii) is operated by--
(I) an eligible childcare provider 
described in section 658P(6)(A) of the 
Child Care and Development Block Grant 
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858n(6)(A)); or
(II) a childcare provider that, on 
the date of enactment of this Act--
(aa) is licensed, 
regulated, or registered in the 
State, territory of the United 
States, or territory of the 
Indian Tribe in which the 
provider is located; and
(bb) meets applicable 
State, Tribal, territorial, and 
local health and safety 
requirements.
(B) Inclusions.--The term ``childcare'' includes--
(i) a school-based program described in 
subparagraph (A);
(ii) a program described in subparagraph 
(A) that is a Head Start program, including a 
migrant and seasonal Head Start program, or an 
American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start 
program carried out under the Head Start Act 
(42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.);
(iii) a facility used for a program 
described in subparagraph (A); and
(iv) a service provided under a program 
described in subparagraph (A).
(2) Initiative.--The term ``Initiative'' means the 
Expanding Childcare in Rural America Initiative established 
under subsection (b).
(3) Rural area.--The term ``rural area'' has the meaning 
given the term in section 343(a)(13)(A) of the Consolidated 
Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(13)(A)).
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
of Agriculture.
(b) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish an initiative, to 
be known as the ``Expanding Childcare in Rural America Initiative'', 
under which the Secretary shall provide, for each of fiscal years 2027 
through 2029, priority in accordance with subsection (c) to address the 
availability, quality, and cost of childcare in rural areas.
(c) Childcare Priorities.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, in selecting recipients of loans and grants under a 
program described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall give 
priority to any qualified applicant that proposes to use the 
loan or grant to address the availability, quality, or cost of 
childcare in a rural area.
(2) Description of programs.--The programs referred to in 
paragraph (1) are the following:
(A) The essential community facilities loan and 
grant programs authorized under section 306(a) of the 
Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 
1926(a)).
(B) The business and industry direct and guaranteed 
loan program authorized under section 310B(g) of that 
Act (7 U.S.C. 1932(g)).
(C) The rural microentrepreneur assistance program 
authorized under section 379E of that Act (7 U.S.C. 
2008s).
(D) The intermediary relending program authorized 
under section 310H of that Act (7 U.S.C. 1936b).
(d) Requirement.--In providing funding in accordance with the 
Initiative, the Secretary shall ensure a balanced geographical 
distribution of the benefits under the Initiative.
(e) Evaluation; Report.--
(1) Evaluation.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct a 
comprehensive quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the 
projects carried out using assistance provided under the 
Initiative, including--
(A) a description of--
(i) the types of projects carried out;
(ii) the communities in which the projects 
are carried out;
(iii) the organizations and entities 
participating in the projects; and
(iv) the types of partnerships developed to 
carry out the projects; and
(B) the economic and social impacts of the 
investments in the projects.
(2) Report.--Not later than 4 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate 
and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of 
Representatives a report describing the evaluation conducted 
under paragraph (1), including a thorough analysis of the 
outcomes of the evaluation.
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