Early Childhood Nutrition Improvement Act of 2024

(1) in subparagraph (C), by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as subclauses (I) and (II), respectively, and indenting appropriately;

(2) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (F) as clauses (i) through (vi), respectively, and indenting appropriately;

(3) in the matter preceding clause (i) (as so redesignated), by striking No institution shall be eligible to participate in the program unless it satisfies the following criteria: and inserting the following:

No institution shall be eligible to participate in the program unless the institution—

(4) in subparagraph (A) (as so designated)—

(A) in clause (iii)(II) (as so redesignated), by striking the organization shall employ and inserting employs;

(B) in clause (iv) (as so redesignated), by striking the organization before does not base;

(C) in clause (v) (as so redesignated), by striking the organization before has in effect; and

(D) in clause (vi) (as so redesignated), by striking the institution before is bonded; and

(5) by adding at the end the following:

The eligibility of an institution described in paragraph (2)(B) shall be determined on an annual basis.

(1) in subparagraph (B)—

(A) by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as subclauses (I) and (II), respectively, and indenting appropriately;

(B) in the matter preceding subclause (I) (as so redesignated), by striking Procedures established pursuant to and inserting the following:

Procedures established under

(B) ; and

(i) by adding at the end the following:

Under procedures established under subparagraph (A), the Secretary may not consider State-specific requirements in determining noncompliance or serious deficiency with respect to an institution under this section.

(2) in subparagraph (C), in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking pursuant to and inserting under; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subparagraph, the Secretary shall—

(I) review the serious deficiency process for the program under this section; and

(II) issue guidance and, as appropriate, regulations based on that review.

Under clause (i)(I), the Secretary shall review, at a minimum—

(I) the processes relating to determining a serious deficiency with respect to an institution or a family or group day care home, including—

(aa) which measures automatically result in a finding of serious deficiency; and

(bb) how to differentiate between—

(AA) a reasonable margin of human error and systematic or intentional noncompliance; and

(BB) State-specific requirements and Federal regulations;

(II) the processes relating to appealing and mediating a finding of serious deficiency with respect to an institution or a family or group day care home, including—

(aa) findings related to State-specific requirements; and

(bb) processes for ensuring officials involved in appeals and mediation are fair and impartial;

(III) the processes relating to determining the circumstances under which a corrective action plan is acceptable;

(IV) the processes relating to termination, suspension, and disqualification under the program, including maintenance of the list under subparagraph (E); and

(V) opportunities for strengthening the processes intended to reduce additional State agency requirements on institutions or family or group day care homes that are in addition to those required under Federal law, including—

(aa) State evaluation of practices used at the time of review;

(bb) regional approval of those additional State agency requirements; and

(cc) oversight through the management evaluation process.

Guidance and regulations, as applicable, issued under clause (i)(II) shall—

(aa) streamline and modernize the program under this section;

(bb) reduce the paperwork burden on parents; and

(cc) assist sponsoring organizations, State agencies, and the Food and Nutrition Service in ensuring a fair, uniform, and effective administration of the serious deficiency process while retaining program integrity.

Guidance and regulations, as applicable, issued under clause (i)(II) shall include—

(aa) clarity on the measures required to determine noncompliance, including—

(AA) an allowance for a reasonable margin of human error; and

(BB) a distinction between a reasonable margin of human error and systematic or intentional noncompliance;

(bb) a formal appeals and mediation process that—

(AA) is conducted by a trained official who is independent from and not affiliated with any person or agency involved in the determination being appealed or mediated;

(BB) provides an opportunity for a fair hearing for any institution or family or group day care home determined to have a serious deficiency finding or inadequate corrective action plan; and

(CC) provides for the evaluation and resolution of disputes over State agency requirements for institutions or family or group day care homes that are in addition to requirements under Federal law;

(cc) timeframes for acceptable corrective action plans for group or family day care homes that are consistent with corrective action timeframes for child care centers; and

(dd) a process to dismiss a serious deficiency upon correction of that serious deficiency.

(1) by striking (2)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B) of this paragraph and inserting the following:

Subject to subparagraph (B)

(1) ; and

(2) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following:

No reimbursement may be made to any institution under this paragraph, or to family or group day care home sponsoring organizations under paragraph (3), for more than—

(i) 2 meals and 1 supplement or 1 meal and 2 supplements per day per child; or

(ii) 3 meals and 1 supplement or 2 meals and 2 supplements per day per child, in the case of child care during which there are 8 or more hours between the beginning of the first meal service period and the beginning of the fourth meal service period.

The Secretary shall—

(i) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this subparagraph, conduct a study on—

(I) the prevalence of third meal reimbursement by program operators;

(II) the role of the third meal in effectively supporting working families;

(III) the contribution of the third meal to the local economy; and

(IV) the contribution of the third meal to the economic viability of child care and afterschool programs, including in rural areas;

(ii) submit a report to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives on the findings of the study under clause (i); and

(iii) based on those findings, provide guidance to program operators—

(I) to improve implementation of the program under this section;

(II) to maximize the utility of the third meal in supporting working families; and

(III) to limit unnecessary costs to program operators and parents of participating children.

Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall establish an advisory committee (referred to in this subsection as the Advisory Committee)—

(A) to examine the feasibility of reducing unnecessary or duplicative paperwork resulting from regulations and recordkeeping requirements, including paperwork resulting from additional State requirements, for persons participating or seeking to participate in the program under this section, including State agencies, family child care homes, child care centers, and sponsoring organizations; and

(B) to provide recommendations to the Secretary to reduce paperwork for participants in the program under this section while ensuring that proper accountability and program integrity are maintained.

The Advisory Committee shall be composed of not fewer than 14 members, of whom—

(A) 1 shall be a representative of a public nonprofit center;

(B) 1 shall be a representative of a private nonprofit center;

(C) 1 shall be a representative of a family or group day care home;

(D) 1 shall be a representative of a Head Start center;

(E) 1 shall be a representative of a for-profit center;

(F) 1 shall be a representative of an emergency shelter;

(G) 1 shall be a representative of an adult day care center;

(H) 1 shall be a representative of a State agency;

(I) 1 shall be a representative of a sponsoring organization for any of the entities described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (D), (E), (F), and (G);

(J) 1 shall be a representative of a sponsoring organization of family or group day care homes;

(K) 1 shall be a representative of an antihunger advocacy organization;

(L) 1 shall be a representative of an at-risk after school program;

(M) 1 shall be a representative of a child care advocacy organization; and

(N) 1 shall be a representative of an advocacy organization representing parents with young children.

In developing recommendations pursuant to paragraph (1)(B), the Advisory Committee shall consider—

(A) information, recommendations, and reports from the Paperwork Reduction Work Group established by the Food and Nutrition Service pursuant to section 119(i) of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 1766 note; Public Law 108–265);

(B) the use of electronic systems and recordkeeping technologies to reduce paperwork for program participants and program operators; and

(C) duplicative requirements across multiple Federal programs.

Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall issue guidance and, as appropriate, regulations, based on the recommendations provided to the Secretary under paragraph (1)(B)—

(A) to streamline and modernize applications for the program under this section; and

(B) to streamline and modernize the monitoring and auditing of programmatic documentation and recordkeeping for the program under this section, including by—

(i) eliminating the use of the enrollment form for the purpose of claiming meals;

(ii) allowing the use of direct certification in all States;

(iii) requiring States to accept as documentation digital forms, digitized and electronic signatures, and electronic records;

(iv) allowing the use of electronic data collection systems containing all required Federal standards for the program under this section;

(v) addressing nonmandatory State-specific requirements; and

(vi) requiring the adoption of generally accepted technologies for client-facing technology, virtual visits, and technology used for administrative functions to reduce the burden on participants and program operators and administrators.

Not later than 180 days after carrying out paragraph (4), the Secretary shall submit a report to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives containing—

(A) with respect to any recommendation of the Advisory Committee provided to the Secretary under paragraph (1)(B) that the Secretary did not implement, an explanation for nonimplementation; and

(B) recommendations for legislative action that may further—

(i) strengthen and streamline program application and monitoring processes; and

(ii) reduce administrative burdens on grantees, program participants, local and State Governments, and the Federal Government.