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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Seventh Legislature, Second Regular Session
child care; grant program; fund
Purpose
Establishes the Child Care Grant Program (Program) and Child Care Infrastructure Fund (Fund) administered by the Department of Economic Security (DES) to provide services to eligible Arizona families with child care needs. Outlines administrative and eligibility requirements for the Program.
Background
DES administers child care assistance to eligible low-income families who need child care assistance for children who are 12 years old or younger through the Child Care Assistance Program. Depending on the category, the length of time for which families are eligible to receive child care subsidies is restricted to: 1) a cumulative 60-months per child, for the low-income working population; 2) 24 months for the Transitional Child Care benefit; and 3) for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Child Care benefit, as long as the family is receiving TANF Cash Benefits, which has a 24-month cumulative lifetime limit. Families are limited to receiving child care assistance for six children per household (A.R.S. § 46-803).
In addition to DES resources, child care services are also available through the Department of Child Safety and the Arizona Early Childhood Development and Health Board, otherwise known as First Things First. First Things First's primary function is to provide fully funded child care and preschool scholarships. To qualify for child care through First Things First, a family must: 1) have an income that is at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level; 2) have children who are five years old or younger; 3) include parents who are employed; 4) accept a DES child care subsidy, if available; and 5) not be receiving duplicate funding from other programs (First Things First).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Establishes the Program, administered by DES, to grant monies to eligible applicants to provide the following services to families in Arizona with child care needs:
a) early learning and child care in underserved communities that have historically experienced a lack of accessible and affordable child care, including rural areas;
b) early learning and child care in low-income and moderate-income communities;
c) child care during nonstandard working hours, such as evenings and weekends;
d) child care for infants and toddlers; or
e) child care for children with disabilities.
2. Allows DES to adopt rules, policies and procedures to carry out the purposes of the Program.
3. Requires an eligible applicant to submit an application for a grant on a form prescribed by DES.
4. Requires DES to provide assistance to grantees relating to:
a) child care facility and capacity expansion;
b) business strategy and operations support and training; or
c) increasing or enhancing early learning and child care capacity for federally recognized Indian tribes, nations or communities.
5. Allows DES to contract with a qualified community partner organization in Arizona to assist in administering the Program.
6. Establishes the Fund, administered by DES, consisting of legislative appropriations, grants, gifts, contributions and devises.
7. Requires the State Treasurer, on notice from DES, to invest and divest monies in the Fund and credit monies earned from investment to the Fund.
8. Specifies that Fund monies are continuously appropriated.
9. Allows Fund monies to be used to pay the administrative costs of establishing and implementing the Program.
10. Allows Fund monies to also be used for:
a) planning and designing high quality early learning and child care infrastructure;
b) acquiring property for high quality early learning and child care infrastructure or child care development projects;
c) repairing, improving and renovating early learning and child care infrastructure that would expand the capacity of the infrastructure;
d) child care infrastructure development projects, including direct project management costs;
e) contracting with third parties, including nonprofit organization and community development financial institutions, to assist in the administration of child care infrastructure activities;
f) child care infrastructure construction costs and expenses;
g) child care start-up expenses, including workforce development, licensing, insurance and accreditation;
h) early child care infrastructure adaptations required by a licensing agency in Arizona;
i) providing support to establish or expand child care provider operations and infrastructure, including training and technical assistance; or
j) any other costs that DES determines to be necessary to carry out early child care infrastructure activities in Arizona.
11. Defines an eligible applicant as a:
a) child care facility;
b) child care provider;
c) person that is interest in opening a child care facility or becoming a child care provider in Arizona; or
d) person that is engaged in unlicensed or uncertified child care and that is interested in becoming a licensed or certified child care provider in Arizona;
12. Defines qualified community partner organization as an entity with demonstrable experience in:
a) providing technical assistance to child care providers in Arizona; or
b) supporting the establishment or expansion of child care providers in Arizona.
13. Contains a statement of legislative findings.
14. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
House Action
GOV 2/18/26 DP 5-0-1-1
3rd Read 3/9/26 38-14-7-0-1
Prepared by Senate Research
March 19, 2026
AN/ci