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As Re-Referred by the House Rules and Reference Committee
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
H. B. No. 41
2025-2026
Representatives White, A., Roemer
Cosponsors: Representatives Troy,
Deeter, Williams, Odioso, Robb Blasdel, Young, Plummer, Johnson, Ray,
Salvo, Lett, Miller, M.
A
BILL
To
establish
certain child care grant programs, including those related to child
care capacity and learning labs, and to make an appropriation.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
All
items in this act are hereby appropriated as designated out of any
moneys in the state treasury to the credit of the designated fund.
For all operating appropriations made in this act, those in the first
column are for fiscal year 2026 and those in the second column are
for fiscal year 2027. The operating appropriations made in this act
are in addition to any other operating appropriations made for these
fiscal years.
Section
2.
1
2
3
4
5
A
KID
DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH
B
General
Revenue Fund
C
GRF
830412
Child
Care Grants
$10,250,000
$10,250,000
D
TOTAL
GRF General Revenue Fund
$10,250,000
$10,250,000
E
TOTAL
ALL BUDGET FUND GROUPS
$10,250,000
$10,250,000
CHILD
CARE GRANTS
(A)
Of the foregoing appropriation item 830412, Child Care Grants,
$10,000,000 in each fiscal year shall be used by the Department of
Children and Youth to administer, in consultation with the Department
of Development and JobsOhio, a grant program to assist employers in
retrofitting or equipping their onsite or near-site child care
facilities, in building new child care facilities, or in partnering
with child care providers, government entities, nonprofit
organizations, or others on initiatives to create child care capacity
within their communities to support the workforce. The program's aim
shall be to increase the availability of child care in communities
across Ohio and to aid in business growth and recruitment in this
state.
Under
the program, any entity may apply for a grant, but, in awarding
grants, the Department of Children and Youth shall give priority to
the following applicant types: employers seeking child care for their
employees' children; government entities, nonprofit organizations,
and other community partnerships seeking to expand child care
capacity for the workforce in the communities they serve; or any
combination of these applicant types. To be eligible for an award, an
applicant must demonstrate that the applicant's facility or
applicant's partner provides, or intends to provide, publicly funded
child care and participates, or intends to participate, in the
state's tiered quality rating and improvement system. An applicant
also shall submit a plan for ongoing sustainability to support its
capacity expanding initiative and shall identify the needs and gaps
its initiative would address.
Not
more than $750,000 shall be awarded to each grant recipient, and the
recipient shall use the award only for the purposes described in this
division.
In
addition, as part of the program and in an effort to aid business
growth and recruitment in this state, the Department of Development,
in coordination with JobsOhio and the Department of Children and
Youth, shall create additional incentives for new or existing
businesses to expand child care capacity or child care support for
the state's workforce.
(B)(1)
Of the foregoing appropriation item 830412, Child Care Grants,
$250,000 in each fiscal year shall be used by the Department of
Children and Youth to contract with an entity to establish a cohort
comprised of recipients of child care-related grants awarded by the
Department, create an Employer-Based Child Care Co-Design Learning
Lab, and develop tools and resources in order to train and support
future child care grant applicants and other employers, government
entities, or nonprofit organizations interested in expanding child
care capacity.
(2)
The entity selected shall coordinate education and knowledge-sharing
among the grant recipients and cohorts, as well as provide technical
assistance to these entities. The entity shall collaborate with grant
recipients to collect and measure data, outcomes, and best practices,
all as prescribed by the Department of Children and Youth. The entity
shall prepare a report compiling the foregoing data, outcomes, and
best practices and submit copies of it to the Department, Governor,
and members of the General Assembly. The Department shall assist the
entity in making the report available on the web site maintained by
the Department.
(3)
The entity selected also shall establish an employer-based child care
co-design learning lab program. The program's aim shall be twofold:
to assist employers, including businesses, government entities, and
nonprofit organizations, in learning how to form partnerships and
best fund, including by utilizing tax credits, grants such as those
available under this section, and employer contributions and other
opportunities as necessary to create onsite or near-site child care
spots or facilities and to identify other innovative strategies to
expand child care capacity in their communities. The program shall
prioritize rural and underserved areas of this state. Each design lab
may be regionally based and provide four to six months of intensive
learning to employer participants. Participants shall learn processes
and develop knowledge and competencies to plan, organize, and find
operations partners, to create long-term financial modeling and
business plans, to partner with community stakeholders and
organizations, and to apply for grants, including those awarded by
the Department. The program shall emphasize the importance of
operations partners, shall provide participants with sample requests
for proposals, and shall encourage engagement with community and
regional workforce leadership.
(4)
Additionally, the entity selected shall design an employer tool kit
and other resources as determined by the Department of Children and
Youth, in consultation with JobsOhio and the Department of
Development, that may be used to educate employers on issues
impacting, and solutions improving, employee access to child care.
The tool kit shall include, but not be limited to, all of the
following topics:
(a)
Strategies to expand child care capacity;
(b)
Any information, competencies, best practices, and other resources
identified in the co-design lab program described in this division;
(c)
Procedures for applying for available child care-related federal,
state, and local tax credits and creating child care-related flexible
spending accounts or other employee benefit supports;
(d)
Any other resources identified by the Department of Children and
Youth, in consultation with JobsOhio and the Department of
Development.
The
Department of Children and Youth shall make the tool kit available on
the web site it maintains and shall otherwise distribute copies of
the tool kit to businesses, government entities, nonprofit
organizations, and other entities as determined by the Department.
Section
3.
Within
the limits set forth in this act, the Director of Budget and
Management shall establish accounts indicating the source and amount
of funds for each appropriation made in this act, and shall determine
the manner in which appropriation accounts shall be maintained.
Expenditures from operating appropriations contained in this act
shall be accounted for as though made in, and are subject to all
applicable provisions of, the main operating appropriations act of
the 136th General Assembly.