**BREAKING NEWS**
CCDBG Reauthorization Bill Introduced in Senate
to Improve the Quality of Child Care in America
Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Senator Richard Burr (R-NC), Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), and Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) have introduced a bill to reauthorize the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), the primary federal grant program that provides child care assistance for families and funds child care quality initiatives. Child Care Aware® of America supports the measure, S. 1086, “Child Care Development and Block Grant Act of 2013,” which would reauthorize the program for the first time since 1996.
Under the Reauthorization Bill, states would be required to ensure that all child care providers who care for CCDBG funded children:
• Receive health and safety training in specific areas
• Receive comprehensive background checks (including fingerprints, checks of the sex offender and child abuse registries)
• Receive on-site monitoring
This bill includes many measures to improve the quality of child care and ensure that all children in child care settings are safe. It is time to protect children in child care and promote their healthy development.
We welcome your feedback with regard to the proposed reauthorization bill. If you would like to discuss any component of the bill, please contact Nick Vucic at Nick.Vucic@usa.childcareaware.org. You can read Child Care Aware of America’s press release here.
Source: Child Care Aware of America, June 4, 2013
Legislative Education Center 