42 U.S.C. § 9840a — Early Head Start programs

Page 7881 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 9840a Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 110–134, § 14(2), struck out ‘‘(age 3 to compulsory school attendance)’’ after ‘‘eligible chil- dren’’. Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 110–134, § 14(3), added par. (3) and struck out former par. (3) which read as follows: ‘‘In providing services through a Head Start program to such children, the Indian tribe may not use funds that the Secretary has determined, in accordance with sec- tion 9835(g)(3) of this title, are to be used for expanding Head Start programs under this subchapter.’’ 1998—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 105–285, § 112(a), sub- stituted ‘‘criteria may provide—’’ for ‘‘criteria may provide’’, realigned margins of subpars. (A) and (B), in subpar. (B) substituted ‘‘shall prescribe, that—’’ for ‘‘shall prescribe, that’’, inserted ‘‘(i)’’ before ‘‘programs assisted under this subchapter may’’, and substituted ‘‘subparagraph (A); and’’, cl. (ii), and concluding provi- sions for ‘‘clause (A).’’ Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 105–285, § 112(b), inserted at end ‘‘A Head Start agency that provides a Head Start pro- gram with full-working-day services in collaboration with other agencies or entities may collect a family co- payment to support extended day services if a copay- ment is required in conjunction with the collaborative. The copayment charged to families receiving services through the Head Start program shall not exceed the copayment charged to families with similar incomes and circumstances who are receiving the services through participation in a program carried out by an- other agency or entity.’’ Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 105–285, § 112(c), inserted at end ‘‘Each Head Start program operated in a community shall be permitted to recruit and accept applications for enrollment of children throughout the year.’’ Subsec. (d)(1)(B). Pub. L. 105–285, § 112(d), substituted ‘‘a community that is an off-reservation area, des- ignated by an appropriate tribal government, in con- sultation with the Secretary’’ for ‘‘a community with a near-reservation designation, as defined by the Bu- reau of Indian Affairs’’. 1994—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103–252, § 111(1), substituted ‘‘shall be permitted to provide more than 1 year of Head Start services to eligible children (age 3 to com- pulsory school attendance) in the State.’’ for ‘‘may pro- vide more than one year of Head Start services to chil- dren from age 3 to the age of compulsory school attend- ance in the State in which the Head Start program is located. The Secretary may not issue or enforce any rule (as defined in section 551(4) of title 5) or guideline that forbids any Head Start agency to carry out a Head Start program in accordance with the authority de- scribed in the preceding sentence.’’ Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 103–252, § 111(2), added subsec. (d). 1990—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 101–501, § 113, substituted ‘‘1994’’ for ‘‘1990’’ in closing provisions. Subsec. (a)(2)(B). Pub. L. 101–597 substituted ‘‘health professional shortage area’’ for ‘‘health manpower shortage area’’. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 101–501, § 114, inserted at end ‘‘The Secretary may not issue or enforce any rule (as defined in section 551(4) of title 5) or guideline that forbids any Head Start agency to carry out a Head Start program in accordance with the authority described in the pre- ceding sentence.’’ 1986—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 99–425 substituted ‘‘1990’’ for ‘‘1986’’ in closing provisions. 1984—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 98–558, § 105(a), inserted at end ‘‘During the period beginning on October 30, 1984, and ending on October 1, 1986, and unless specifically authorized in any statute of the United States enacted after October 30, 1984, the Secretary may not make any change in the method, as in effect on April 25, 1984, of calculating income used to prescribe eligibility for the participation of persons in the Head Start programs as- sisted under this subchapter if such change would re- sult in any reduction in, or exclusion from, participa- tion of persons in any of such programs.’’ Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 98–558, § 105(b), added subsec. (c). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1994 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 103–252 effective May 18, 1994, but not applicable to Head Start agencies and other re- cipients of financial assistance under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) until Oct. 1, 1994, see section 127 of Pub. L. 103–252, set out as a note under section 9832 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1990 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 101–501 effective Oct. 1, 1990, see section 1001(a) of Pub. L. 101–501, set out as a note under section 8621 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1986 AMENDMENT Amendment by Pub. L. 99–425 effective Oct. 1, 1986, see section 1001 of Pub. L. 99–425, set out as a note under section 8621 of this title. SELECTION CRITERIA FOR INDIAN TRIBE OPERATING HEAD START PROGRAM Pub. L. 118–47, div. D, title II, § 238, Mar. 23, 2024, 138 Stat. 681, provided that: ‘‘In this fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, notwithstanding the income eli- gibility requirements of subsections (a) and paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (d) of section 645 of the Head Start Act [42 U.S.C. 9840] and income eligibility criteria and allowances prescribed in regulations, an Indian tribe that operates a Head Start program may, at its discretion, establish selection criteria, including cri- teria to prioritize children in families for which a child, a family member, or a member of the same household, is a member of an Indian tribe, to enroll children who would benefit from the Head Start program.’’ SELECTION CRITERIA FOR AGENCY OPERATING MIGRANT OR SEASONAL HEAD START PROGRAM Pub. L. 118–47, div. D, title II, § 239, Mar. 23, 2024, 138 Stat. 681, provided that: ‘‘In this fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter, notwithstanding the income eli- gibility requirements of subsection (a) of section 645 of the Head Start Act [42 U.S.C. 9840] and income eligi- bility criteria and allowances prescribed in regulations, an agency that operates a migrant or seasonal Head Start program may, at its discretion, establish selec- tion criteria to enroll children who would benefit from the Head Start program, giving priority to children of migrant farmworker families: Provided, That such se- lection criteria shall limit that enrollment to children who have at least one family member whose income comes primarily from agricultural employment as de- fined in section 3 of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricul- tural Worker Protection Act (29 U.S.C. 1802).’’ § 9840a. Early Head Start programs (a) In general The Secretary shall make grants to entities (referred to in this subchapter as ‘‘Early Head Start agencies’’) in accordance with this section for programs (referred to in this subchapter as ‘‘Early Head Start programs’’) providing family- centered services for low-income families with very young children designed to promote the de- velopment of the children, and to enable their parents to fulfill their roles as parents and to move toward self-sufficiency. (b) Scope and design of programs In carrying out a program described in sub- section (a), an entity receiving assistance under this section shall— (1) provide, either directly or through refer- ral, early, continuous, intensive, and com- prehensive child development and family sup- port services that will enhance the physical, Page 7882 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 9840a social, emotional, and intellectual develop- ment of participating children; (2) ensure that the level of services provided to families responds to their needs and cir- cumstances; (3) promote positive parent-child inter- actions; (4) provide services to parents to support their role as parents (including parenting skills training and training in basic child de- velopment) and services to help the families move toward self-sufficiency (including edu- cational and employment services, as appro- priate); (5) coordinate services with services pro- vided by programs in the State (including home-based services) and programs in the community (including programs for infants and toddlers with disabilities and programs for homeless infants and toddlers) to ensure a comprehensive array of services (such as health and mental health services and family support services); (6) ensure that children with documented be- havioral problems, including problems involv- ing behavior related to prior or existing trau- ma, receive appropriate screening and referral; (7) ensure formal linkages with local Head Start programs in order to provide for con- tinuity of services for children and families; (8) develop and implement a systematic pro- cedure for transitioning children and parents from an Early Head Start program to a Head Start program or other local early childhood education and development program; (9) establish channels of communication be- tween staff of the Early Head Start program, and staff of a Head Start program or other local providers of early childhood education and development programs, to facilitate the coordination of programs; (10) in the case of a Head Start agency that operates a program and that also provides Head Start services through the age of manda- tory school attendance, ensure that children and families participating in the program re- ceive such services through such age; (11) ensure formal linkages with providers of early intervention services for infants and tod- dlers with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.), with the State interagency coordi- nating council, as established in part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1431 et seq.), and with the agency re- sponsible for administering section 5106a of this title; (12) meet such other requirements con- cerning design and operation of the program described in subsection (a) as the Secretary may establish. (c) Persons eligible to participate Persons who may participate in programs de- scribed in subsection (a) include— (1) pregnant women; and (2) families with children under age 3; who meet the eligibility criteria specified in sec- tion 9840(a)(1) of this title, including the criteria specified in section 9840(a)(1)(B)(ii) of this title. (d) Eligible service providers To be eligible to receive assistance under this section, an entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require. Entities that may apply to carry out activities under this section include— (1) entities operating Head Start programs under this subchapter; (2) entities operating Indian Head Start pro- grams or migrant or seasonal Head Start pro- grams; and (3) other public entities, and nonprofit or for-profit private entities, including commu- nity-based and faith-based organizations, ca- pable of providing child and family services that meet the standards for participation in programs under this subchapter and meet such other appropriate requirements relating to the activities under this section as the Secretary may establish. (e) Selection of grant recipients The Secretary shall award grants under this section on a competitive basis to applicants meeting the criteria specified in subsection (d) (giving priority to entities with a record of pro- viding early, continuous, and comprehensive childhood development and family services). (f) Distribution In awarding grants to eligible applicants under this section, the Secretary shall— (1) ensure an equitable national geographic distribution of the grants; and (2) award grants to applicants proposing to serve communities in rural areas and to appli- cants proposing to serve communities in urban areas. (g) Monitoring, training, technical assistance, and evaluation (1) Requirement In order to ensure the successful operation of programs assisted under this section, the Secretary shall use funds made available under section 9835(a)(2)(E) of this title to mon- itor the operation of such programs, and funds made available under section 9835(a)(2)(C)(i)(I) of this title to provide training and technical assistance tailored to the particular needs of such programs, consistent with section 9835(c) of this title. (2) Training and technical assistance (A) Activities Of the portion set aside under section 9835(a)(2)(C)(i)(I) of this title— (i) not less than 50 percent shall be made available to Early Head Start agencies to use directly, which may include, at their discretion, the establishment of local or regional agreements with community ex- perts, institutions of higher education, or private consultants, for training and tech- nical assistance activities in order to make program improvements identified by such agencies; (ii) not less than 25 percent shall be available to the Secretary to support a State-based training and technical assist- Page 7883 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 9840a ance system, or a national system, de- scribed in section 9843(e) of this title, in- cluding infant and toddler specialists, to support Early Head Start agencies, con- sistent with subparagraph (B); and (iii) the remainder of such amount shall be made available to the Secretary to as- sist Early Head Start agencies in meeting and exceeding the standards described in section 9836a(a)(1) of this title (directly, or through grants, contracts, or other agree- ments or arrangements with an entity with demonstrated expertise relating to infants, toddlers, and families) by— (I) providing ongoing training and technical assistance to Early Head Start agencies, including developing training and technical assistance materials and resources to support program develop- ment and improvement and best prac- tices in providing services to children and families served by Early Head Start programs; (II) supporting a national network of infant and toddler specialists designed to improve the quality of Early Head Start programs; (III) providing ongoing training and technical assistance on Early Head Start program development and improvement for regional staff charged with moni- toring and overseeing the administration of the program carried out under this section; and (IV) if funds remain after the activities described in subclauses (I), (II), and (III) are carried out, carry out 1 or more of the following activities: (aa) Providing support and program planning and implementation assist- ance for new Early Head Start agen- cies, including for agencies who want to use funds as described in section 9840(a)(5) of this title to serve infants and toddlers. (bb) Creating special training and technical assistance initiatives tar- geted to serving high-risk populations, such as children in the child welfare system and homeless children. (cc) Providing professional develop- ment designed to increase program participation for underserved popu- lations of eligible children. (B) Contracts For the purposes of supporting a State- based system, as described in subparagraph (A)(ii), that will meet the needs of Early Head Start agencies and provide high-qual- ity, sustained, and intensive training and technical assistance on programming for in- fants and toddlers to Early Head Start agen- cies, and in order to help such agencies meet or exceed the standards described in section 9836a(a)(1) of this title, the Secretary shall— (i) use funds reserved under subpara- graph (A)(ii) in combination with funds re- served under section 9835(a)(2)(C)(i)(II)(bb) of this title to ensure the contracts de- scribed in section 9843(e)(1) of this title provide for a minimum of 1 full-time spe- cialist with demonstrated expertise in the development of infants and toddlers; and (ii) ensure that such contracts and the services provided in the contracts are inte- grated with and augment the contracts awarded and services provided under sec- tion 9843(e) of this title; (h) Center-based staff The Secretary shall— (1) ensure that, not later than September 30, 2010, all teachers providing direct services to children and families participating in Early Head Start programs located in Early Head Start centers, have a minimum of a child de- velopment associate credential, and have been trained (or have equivalent coursework) in early childhood development; and (2) establish staff qualification goals to en- sure that not later than September 30, 2012, all such teachers have been trained (or have equivalent coursework) in early childhood de- velopment with a focus on infant and toddler development. (i) Staff qualifications and development (1) Home visitor staff standards In order to further enhance the quality of home visiting services provided to families of children participating in home-based, center- based, or combination program options under this subchapter, the Secretary shall establish standards for training, qualifications, and the conduct of home visits for home visitor staff in Early Head Start programs. (2) Contents of standards The standards for training, qualifications, and the conduct of home visits shall include content related to— (A) structured child-focused home visiting that promotes parents’ ability to support the child’s cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development; (B) effective strengths-based parent edu- cation, including methods to encourage par- ents as their child’s first teachers; (C) early childhood development with re- spect to children from birth through age 3; (D) methods to help parents promote emer- gent literacy in their children from birth through age 3, including use of research- based strategies to support the development of literacy and language skills for children who are limited English proficient; (E) ascertaining what health and develop- mental services the family receives and working with providers of these services to eliminate gaps in service by offering annual health, vision, hearing, and developmental screening for children from birth to entry into kindergarten, when needed; (F) strategies for helping families coping with crisis; and (G) the relationship of health and well- being of pregnant women to prenatal and early child development. (Pub. L. 97–35, title VI, § 645A, as added Pub. L. 103–252, title I, § 112(a), May 18, 1994, 108 Stat. 638; amended Pub. L. 105–285, title I, § 113, Oct. 27, Page 7884 TITLE 42—THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE § 9841 1998, 112 Stat. 2719; Pub. L. 110–134, § 15, Dec. 12, 2007, 121 Stat. 1418.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, re- ferred to in subsec. (b)(11), is title VI of Pub. L. 91–230, Apr. 13, 1970, 84 Stat. 175, which is classified generally to chapter 33 (§ 1400 et seq.) of Title 20, Education. Part C of the Act is classified generally to subchapter III (§ 1431 et seq.) of chapter 33 of Title 20. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 1400 of Title 20 and Tables. AMENDMENTS 2007—Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(1), struck out ‘‘for families with infants and toddlers’’ after ‘‘programs’’ in section catchline. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(2), substituted ‘‘The Secretary shall make grants to entities (referred to in this subchapter as ‘Early Head Start agencies’) in ac- cordance with this section for programs (referred to in this subchapter as ‘Early Head Start programs’)’’ for ‘‘The Secretary shall make grants, in accordance with the provisions of this section for programs’’. Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(A), added par. (4) and struck out former par. (4) which read as follows: ‘‘provide services to parents to support their role as parents and to help the families move toward self-suffi- ciency (including educational and employment services as appropriate);’’. Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(B), added par. (5) and struck out former par. (5) which read as follows: ‘‘coordinate services with services provided by pro- grams in the State and programs in the community (in- cluding programs for infants and toddlers with disabil- ities) to ensure a comprehensive array of services (such as health and mental health services);’’. Subsec. (b)(6), (7). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(C), (D), added par. (6) and redesignated former par. (6) as (7). Former par. (7) redesignated (10). Subsec. (b)(8), (9). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(E), added pars. (8) and (9). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(C), redesignated pars. (8) and (9) as (11) and (12), respectively. Subsec. (b)(10). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(C), redesignated par. (7) as (10). Subsec. (b)(11). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(F), added par. (11) and struck out former par. (11) which read as fol- lows: ‘‘ensure formal linkages with the agencies and en- tities described in section 644(b) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1444(b)) and pro- viders of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.); and’’. Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(C), redesignated par. (8) as (11). Subsec. (b)(12). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(3)(C), redesignated par. (9) as (12). Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(4), substituted ‘‘eligi- bility criteria specified in section 9840(a)(1) of this title, including the criteria specified in section 9840(a)(1)(B)(ii) of this title’’ for ‘‘income criteria speci- fied for families in section 9840(a)(1) of this title’’ in concluding provisions. Subsec. (d)(1) to (3). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(5), added pars. (1) to (3) and struck out former pars. (1) and (2) which read as follows: ‘‘(1) entities operating Head Start programs under this subchapter; and ‘‘(2) other public entities, and nonprofit or for-profit private entities, capable of providing child and family services that meet the standards for participation in programs under this subchapter and meet such other appropriate requirements relating to the activities under this section as the Secretary may establish.’’ Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(6), substituted ‘‘The Secretary shall award grants under this section’’ for ‘‘From the portion specified in section 9835(a)(6) of this title, the Secretary shall award grants under this sub- section’’. Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(7), added subsec. (g) and struck out former subsec. (g) which related to mon- itoring, training, technical assistance, and evaluation of programs assisted under this section. Subsecs. (h), (i). Pub. L. 110–134, § 15(8), added subsecs. (h) and (i). 1998—Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(1), inserted ‘‘Early Head Start’’ in section catchline. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(2), substituted ‘‘pro- visions of this section for’’ for ‘‘provisions of this sec- tion for—’’, struck out par. (1) designation before ‘‘pro- grams providing’’, substituted ‘‘self-sufficiency.’’ for ‘‘self-sufficiency; and’’, and struck out par. (2) which read as follows: ‘‘provision of training and technical as- sistance to entities carrying out programs, and evalua- tion of programs, that were supported under the Com- prehensive Child Development Act (42 U.S.C. 9881 et seq.), as in effect on the day before May 18, 1994.’’ Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(3)(A), inserted ‘‘(including programs for infants and toddlers with dis- abilities)’’ after ‘‘community’’. Subsec. (b)(7). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(3)(B), struck out ‘‘and’’ at end. Subsec. (b)(8), (9). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(3)(C), (D), added par. (8) and redesignated former par. (8) as (9). Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(4)(A), substituted ‘‘subsection (a)’’ for ‘‘subsection (a)(1)’’ in introductory provisions. Subsec. (c)(2). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(4)(B), substituted ‘‘3;’’ for ‘‘3 (or under age 5, in the case of children served by an entity specified in subsection (e)(3) of this section);’’. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(5), inserted ‘‘and’’ at end of par. (1), redesignated par. (3) as (2), inserted ‘‘or for-profit’’ after ‘‘nonprofit’’, and struck out former par. (2) which read as follows: ‘‘entities that, on the day before the date of enactment of this section, were oper- ating— ‘‘(A) Parent-Child Centers receiving financial as- sistance under section 9835(a)(4) of this title, as in ef- fect on such date; or ‘‘(B) programs receiving financial assistance under the Comprehensive Child Development Act, as in ef- fect on such date; and’’. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(8), struck out ‘‘other’’ before ‘‘grant recipients’’ in heading and sub- stituted ‘‘From the portion specified in section 9835(a)(6) of this title,’’ for ‘‘From the balance remain- ing of the portion specified in section 9835(a)(6) of this title, after making grants to the eligible entities speci- fied in subsection (e) of this section,’’ in text. Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(6), (7), redesignated subsec. (f) as (e) and struck out heading and text of former subsec. (e) which related to time-limited priority for certain entities. Subsecs. (f), (g). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(7), (10), added subsec. (g) and redesignated former subsec. (g) as (f). Former subsec. (f) redesignated (e). Subsec. (h). Pub. L. 105–285, § 113(9), struck out head- ing and text of subsec. (h) which related to Secretarial responsibilities. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective May 18, 1994, but not applicable to Head Start agencies and other recipients of financial assistance under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) until Oct. 1, 1994, see section 127 of Pub. L. 103–252, set out as an Effective Date of 1994 Amendment note under section 9832 of this title. § 9841. Appeals, notice, hearing, and mediation; alternative agency for Indian tribe (a) Notice requirements; suspension or termi- nation of assistance stayed pending hearing; mediation The Secretary shall prescribe—