“A bill to address the challenges of providing child care opportunities for military families, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section expands eligibility for child care providers in Department of Defense (DoD) military child development centers (i.e., facilities providing subsidized child care to children of service members) by (1) removing the prior service requirement under 10 U.S.C. §1798(b), and (2) authorizing the Secretary of Defense to partner with federal agencies to place qualified national service volunteers (i.e., participants under the National and Community Service Act of 1990 who are trained in education services and meet DoD hiring requirements) in such centers, with benefits accorded under national service laws.
This section directs the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness to prescribe regulations by June 1, 2027—including by revising Department of Defense Instruction 1402.05 or successor—requiring preclearance (i.e., FBI fingerprint check, State Criminal History Repository check, and health screening) for individuals applying to be child care employees at military child development centers (i.e., DoD-operated child care facilities for dependents of service members), regardless of open positions. The regulations must (1) specify a preclearance validity period of not more than one year for employment at such centers and (2) require annual reverification not later than one year after preclearance; the provision clarifies that it does not limit additional DoD background checks, require hiring of precleared individuals, or provide appeal rights to non-selected applicants.
This section authorizes the Secretary of Defense to permit voluntary job-sharing arrangements for child care employees at military child development centers (i.e., facilities providing subsidized child care to eligible military families), consistent with federal part-time employment policies. Such arrangements allow two part-time employees, each working at least 20 hours per week, to share one full-time position's duties to expand the qualified workforce, accommodate caregivers and others unable to work full-time, reduce vacancies and turnover, and ensure service continuity.
This section authorizes the Secretary of Defense to provide child care employees at military child development centers with limited access to specified benefits—(1) commissary and exchange privileges on workdays, on the same basis as other DoD civilian employees; (2) use of Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) retail facilities, including fitness centers, to support workforce stability; (3) tuition assistance and referral bonuses comparable to other DoD programs; and (4) other benefits as determined appropriate—if necessary for recruitment, retention, and continuity of child care services. Benefits are non-transferable, may be revoked at any time, and must be implemented via guidance issued within 180 days of enactment.
This section establishes a unified, Department-wide child care readiness data system to assess, monitor, and manage child care capacity and workforce readiness across the Department of Defense. The system must include data on (1) child care capacity and utilization by military installation and region; (2) workforce staffing levels, vacancies, turnover rates, and compensation ranges; (3) waitlists disaggregated by families with no access, those using temporary or off-installation care, and those needing nontraditional hours care; (4) demand by age cohort, identifying children under age 5; (5) utilization and attrition for fee assistance programs; (6) geographic areas with persistent unmet needs; and (7) other information as appropriate. The Secretary of Defense must standardize data collection across military departments, update the system every 90 days, and brief the Senate and House Armed Services Committees within 180 days of enactment and annually thereafter on system findings, actions to address gaps, and recommendations for legislative, regulatory, or funding changes to reduce unmet child care needs.
This section directs the Secretary of Defense to submit to the congressional defense committees, not later than 90 days after enactment, a report on child care waitlists across the Department of Defense. The report must include (1) steps to centralize systems and collect waitlist data; (2) existing data on waitlists; (3) steps to resolve discrepancies or misleading information, such as duplicate entries or children receiving care while on waitlists for alternatives; (4) an analysis of waitlist spots representing unmet need versus duplicates; and (5) a plan to improve data collection.
This section directs the Secretary of Defense to submit to the congressional defense committees, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, a report analyzing the relationship between child care availability and each of the following: (1) military readiness and training participation; (2) retention and separation decisions; (3) families in which two parents are members of the Armed Forces; (4) high operational-tempo units; and (5) workforce participation of military spouses.