Read the full stored bill text
A4144
ASSEMBLY, No. 4144
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 19, 2026
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman� ANDREW MACURDY
District 21 (Middlesex, Morris, Somerset and Union)
Assemblyman� MICHAEL VENEZIA
District 34 (Essex)
Assemblywoman� SHAMA A. HAIDER
District 37 (Bergen)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Sampson
SYNOPSIS
���� �Child Care Loan Fund Act�; requires EDA to establish
no cost loan program for certain child care provider capital expenses;
appropriates $10 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
concerning child care, supplementing Chapter 1B
of Title 34 of the Revised Statutes, and making an appropriation.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.��� This act shall be known
and may be cited as the �Child Care Loan Fund Act.�
���� 2.��� As used in this act:
���� �Authority� means the New
Jersey Economic Development Authority in the Department of the Treasury.
���� �Grow NJ Kids� means the
State�s quality rating and improvement system for early childhood education.
���� �Licensed child care center� means
a facility approved by the Office of Licensing in the Department of Children
and Families to provide care for six or more children under the age of 13 for
fewer than 24 hours of care per day.
���� �Loan recipient� means the
owner of an existing licensed child care center or registered family day care
home, or an individual or entity who intends to establish a new licensed child
care center or registered family day care home, and who is provided a Child
Care Loan Program loan pursuant to section 3 of this act.
���� �Registered family day care
home� means a child care provider that cares for no more than five children at
any one time in the provider�s home and has received an initial, temporary, or
renewal Certificate of Registration from a sponsoring Child Care Resource and
Referral agency and the Office of Licensing in the Department of Children and
Families.
���� 3.��� a.� The authority, in
collaboration with the Commissioner of Children and Families and the
Commissioner of Human Services, shall establish the Child Care Loan Program to
provide no-cost, zero percent interest financing loans to the owner of �a licensed
child care center or a registered family day care home, or an individual or
entity that intends to establish a new child care center or family day care
home, for qualifying capital expenses.� The goal of the loan program shall be to
increase the overall number of available child care slots in licensed child
care centers and registered family day care homes Statewide.�
���� b.� Qualifying capital expenses
under the loan program shall be limited to:
���� (1)�� the renovation or
expansion of an existing licensed child care center or registered family day
care home in order to increase the overall capacity of the child care center or
the family day care home; or
���� (2)�� the construction of a
new child care center or family day care home.�
���� Under no circumstances shall loan
funds be used for the operating expenses of a licensed child care center or a
registered family day care home.
���� c.���� The owner of an
existing licensed child care center or registered family day care home, or an
individual or entity intending to establish a new child care center or family
day care home, shall submit an application to the authority on a form and in a
manner prescribed by the authority.� The applicant shall, at a minimum, submit
the following as part of an application:
���� (1)�� child care provider
information, including licensing or registration information, if applicable;
���� (2)�� the requested loan
amount;
���� (3)�� a detailed project
description, including contractor cost estimates, any expected outside funding
sources, and the anticipated construction timeline;
���� (4)�� information on how the
project will expand community access to child care services, and the number of
new child care slots that will be directly attributable to the project; and
���� (5)�� any additional
information that may be required by the authority, the Department of Children
and Families, and the Department of Human Services.
���� d.��� Upon receipt of an
application, the Chief Executive of the authority, in collaboration with the
Commissioner of Children and Families and the Commissioner of Human Services,
shall review the application and, subject to evaluation and the availability of
resources in the Child Care Loan Fund, established pursuant to section 4 of
this act, disburse a loan to each approved applicant within 30 days of the
receipt of the loan application.� To the maximum extent feasible, loans shall
be distributed equitably to successful applicants in the northern, central, and
southern regions of the State.
���� e.���� In awarding Child Care
Loan Program loans, the authority shall prioritize applicants who participate
in, or agree to apply to participate in, Grow NJ Kids.
���� f.���� (1)� Except as provided
in paragraph (2) of this subsection, a recipient of a Child Care Loan Program
loan shall commit to repay the loan within five years of the date of
disbursement.
���� (2)�� The authority shall
establish a financial hardship exemption to provide a loan recipient with additional
time in which to repay the loan.
���� (3)�� Prepayment of a Child
Care Loan Program loan may be made by a loan recipient at any time without
penalty.
���� g.��� (1)� A Child Care Loan
Program loan recipient shall agree to secure the loan with collateral, which
collateral may include, but shall not be limited to:
���� (a)�� liens on business
assets;
���� (b)�� pledges of accounts; and
���� (c)�� personal guarantees.
���� (2)�� Under no circumstances
shall a loan recipient be required to provide an equity contribution in excess
of five percent of the loan amount.
�
���� 4.��� a.�
The Child Care Loan Fund is established as a nonlapsing,
revolving fund, which shall be administered by the New Jersey Economic
Development Authority.� The fund shall be credited with monies appropriated
from the General Fund pursuant to section
7 of this act, repayments of loan
principal, and any grants awarded by the federal government, other State
departments, or private foundations for the benefit of the fund.
���� b.��� The State Treasurer
shall be the custodian of the fund, and all disbursements from the fund shall
be made by the State Treasurer upon vouchers signed by the Chief Executive of
the authority.� The monies in the fund shall be invested and reinvested by the
Director of the Division of Investment in the Department of the Treasury as are
other trust funds in the custody of the State Treasurer in the manner provided
by law.� Interest received on the monies in the fund shall be credited to the
fund.
���� 5.��� a.� The authority, in
coordination with the Department of Children and Families and the Department of
Human Services, shall determine the form and scope of technical assistance
services that shall be made available to recipients of the loans disbursed
pursuant to subsection a. of section 3 of this act, which technical assistance
shall include, but shall not be limited to:
���� (1)�� assistance with constructing
new facilities that will satisfy State and local requirements for use as a
licensed child care center or a registered family day care home;
���� (2)�� as necessary, support in
successfully securing and maintaining licensure as child care center according
to the requirements established in P.L.1983, c.492 (C.30:5B-1 et seq.) or registration
as a family day care home according to the requirements� in P.L.1987, c.27
(C.30:5B-16 et seq.); and
���� (3)�� as necessary, and in
coordination with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, guidance
and support with respect to attracting, hiring, and retaining a sufficient
number of teachers and staff to meet State-mandated staff-to-child ratios and
class sizes for licensed child care centers.
���� b.��� The authority shall
assist loan recipients with identifying and securing approval for any local,
State, federal, or private grants, loans, or business development programs
available to support individuals or entities with expenses, in excess of any loan
amount disbursed pursuant to subsection a. of section 3 of this act, to construct
a new licensed child care center or registered family day care home, or to renovate
or expand an existing licensed child care center or registered family day care
home.
���� 6.��� The Chief Executive of
the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, the State Treasurer, the
Commissioner of Children and Families, and the Commissioner of Human Services
shall, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act,"
P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.). adopt rules and regulations as necessary
to implement this act.
���� 7.��� There is appropriated
from the General Fund to the Child Care Loan Fund, established pursuant to
section 4 of this act, $10 million to implement the provisions of the act.
���� 8.��� The provisions of this
act shall take effect on the first day of the third month next following the
date of enactment.
STATEMENT
���� The �Child Care Loan Fund Act�
establishes the Child Care Loan Program to provide no-cost, zero percent
interest financing loans to current and prospective owners of licensed child
care centers (centers) or registered family day care homes (homes) for capital
expenses.� The goal of the loan program is to increase the overall number of
child care slots available Statewide. The New Jersey Economic Development
Authority (EDA) will establish the loan program, in collaboration with the
Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the Department of Human Services
(DHS).
���� Loan funds may be used to: (1)
renovate or expand an existing center or home, or (2) construct a new center or
home.� The bill prohibits the use of loan funds for the operating expenses of a
licensed center or a registered home.
���� The EDA, in collaboration with
the DCF and the DHS, will review loan applications and, subject to the
availability of funding in the Child Care Loan Fund, disburse loans within 30
days.�
���� Loan recipients will repay the
loan in full within five years of disbursement and will secure the loan with
collateral, including liens on business assets, pledges of accounts, and personal
guarantees. �Loan recipients will not be required to contribute greater than a
five percent equity stake to secure a loan.
���� The bill establishes the Child
Care Loan Fund in the Department of the Treasury as the repository for General
Fund appropriations to the fund, repayments of loan principal, and any federal,
State, or private grants for the benefit of the fund.� Interest received on the
monies in the fund will be credited to the fund.
���� The EDA, the DCF, and the DHS
will provide technical assistance to loan recipients, including:
���� (1)�� assistance with
constructing facilities that meet State and local requirements for use as
centers or homes;
���� (2)�� support to secure and
maintain licensure; and
���� (3)�� as needed, and in
coordination with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, support to
attract, hire, and retain a sufficient number of teachers and staff to meet
State requirements.�
���� The EDA will help loan
recipients secure any local, State, federal, or private grants, loans, or
business development programs available to support individuals or entities with
expenses, beyond the Child Care Loan Program loans received, to construct a new
center or home or to renovate or expand an existing center or home.
���� The bill appropriates $10
million from the General Fund to the Child Care Loan Fund to implement the
bill�s provisions.� The bill�s provisions will take effect on the first day of
the third month following the enactment date.