Empowering Young Readers Act of 2026

Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education shall establish a pilot program to award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible organizations to carry out the activities described in subsection (c).

An eligible organization desiring a grant under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably require, including—

(1) information about past work the eligible organization has performed related to book access;

(2) a comprehensive strategic plan for how the eligible organization would use a grant under this section to carry out one or more of the activities described in subsection (c), including a description of how such activities would address the needs of the community served by the eligible organization; and

(3) a letter from a leader in the community served by the eligible organization in support of the eligible organization and the comprehensive strategic plan.

Grant funds awarded under this section shall be used by an eligible entity to carry out one or more of the following activities:

(1) Purchasing or otherwise acquiring new or used books for distribution to children.

(2) Distributing new or used books to children, including through delivery or in-person events.

(3) Donating new or used books to public libraries.

(4) Hosting or organizing literacy-related programming for children and their families, including book fairs, reading hours, book drives, and story times.

(5) Any other activity the Secretary determines appropriate related to book access.

A grant under this section—

(1) shall be in an amount that is not more than $200,000; and

(2) shall be for a period of 2 years.

In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall ensure that applications submitted pursuant to subsection (b) are reviewed based on viewpoint-neutral criteria.

Not later than 6 months after the grant period of the final grant awarded pursuant to this section expires, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the pilot program, which shall include—

(1) qualitative data with respect to the activities carried out by grant recipients, including the number of books provided to children and their families; and

(2) to the extent data is available, information about how child literacy rates in communities served by eligible organizations changed during and after such activities were carried out.

Nothing in this section may be construed as restricting, infringing upon, or otherwise interfering with the ability of a public library or other entity to reject all or part of a donation of books.

In this section:

The term child means an individual under 19 years of age.

The term eligible organization means—

(A) a nongovernmental organization; or

(B) a nonprofit organization.

There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2026, to remain available through fiscal year 2027.