CCAMPIS Reauthorization Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 5458
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Education
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-09-18: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- Last Updated
- 2026-06-11T23:41:24Z
AI-Generated Summary
Child Care Access Means Parents In Schools Reauthorization Act (H.R. 5458)
Purpose This legislation amends Section 419N of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reauthorize and update the Child Care Access Means Parents In School (CCAMPIS) program. Its stated purpose is to support the success of eligible student parents in postsecondary education by providing access to child care services, including campus-based options.
Key Provisions
- Grant Program: The Secretary of Education may award grants to eligible institutions (institutions of higher education with at least 150 Federal Pell Grant-eligible students in the most recent award year, or consortia of such institutions).
- Minimum annual grant: $75,000 (ratably adjusted based on available funds).
- Maximum annual grant: $2,000,000.
- Grant duration: 5 years, with annual payments and possible supplemental or continuation awards based on performance.
- Use of Funds: Institutions must use grants for at least one of: establishing or supporting campus-based child care; providing subsidized child care via a sliding fee scale; or offering subsidized before- and after-school services. Additional permitted uses include support services for student parents and quality enhancements. Funds cannot support new construction (only renovation or repair for health/safety compliance).
- Eligible Student Parents: Defined as parents or guardians of at least one dependent child who are enrolled at an eligible institution and either receive a Pell Grant or meet its financial eligibility criteria (even if ineligible due to incomplete FAFSA, section 484 requirements, or graduate enrollment).
- Application Requirements: Detailed demonstrations of need (demographics, capacity, waiting lists), activity descriptions, resource plans, assurances on licensing and coordination, quality improvement plans (to meet Head Start standards, top-tier state quality ratings, or national accreditation within 3 years), and nondiscrimination compliance.
- Priority: Given to applications that leverage local/institutional resources, use sliding fee scales to serve more parents, or support single parents.
- Reporting: Annual institutional reports on served populations (disaggregated by demographics, enrollment status, outcomes like retention/graduation), fee structures, resource leverage, and quality metrics. The Secretary must publish annual summaries.
- Other Rules: Technical assistance available; institutions may contract for services; assistance does not count as "other financial assistance" for need analysis; institutions must help parents access means-tested benefits programs.
- Nondiscrimination: Prohibits exclusion or discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth, related conditions, or stereotypes), or disability.
- Authorization: $500,000,000 annually for fiscal years 2026 through 2031.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Updates the definition of "eligible student parent" to explicitly include those meeting Pell financial criteria but not receiving grants due to FAFSA issues, eligibility barriers, or graduate status.
- Introduces new quality benchmarks requiring programs to meet specified standards within three years.
- Adds prohibitions against imposing extra eligibility requirements (e.g., work or academic progress mandates) beyond the core criteria.
- Expands reporting to include detailed demographic and outcome data, plus quality metrics.
- Includes new provisions for technical assistance, stakeholder consultation on data collection, and a broader nondiscrimination clause covering gender identity and related categories.
- Raises the authorization level and sets a five-year grant cycle with continuation criteria based on good-faith efforts.
Potential Impacts
- Government Agencies: Increases administrative responsibilities for the Department of Education in grant awarding, technical assistance, reporting oversight, and public data publication.
- Citizens: Aims to improve access to affordable child care for low-income student parents, potentially aiding postsecondary enrollment, retention, and completion without affecting tuition or fees.
- International Relations: No provisions address international matters.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Eligible institutions of higher education and their consortia.
- Eligible student parents and their dependent children.
- Campus-based or contracted child care providers.
- Educational, nonprofit, and child care organizations.
- Students pursuing degrees or credentials at participating institutions.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- The expanded nondiscrimination language covers additional protected characteristics, requiring compliance in all funded programs.
- Mandates adherence to state and local licensing, certification, and health/safety standards for assisted facilities.
- Includes a rule of construction clarifying that institutions may serve community child care needs beyond student parents.
- Ensures grant assistance does not reduce eligibility for other federal student aid calculations.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Rep. Clark, Katherine M. [D-MA-5]
Cosponsors (8)
Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1], Rep. Gomez, Jimmy [D-CA-34], Rep. Pettersen, Brittany [D-CO-7], Rep. McClellan, Jennifer L. [D-VA-4], Rep. Tokuda, Jill N. [D-HI-2], Rep. Simon, Lateefah [D-CA-12], Rep. Underwood, Lauren [D-IL-14], Rep. Brownley, Julia [D-CA-26]
Recent Actions
- 2025-09-18: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- 2025-09-18: Introduced in House
- 2025-09-18: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Child Care Access Means Parents In Schools Reauthorization Act — issued 2025-09-18 — PDF (20 pages)