Congress·Reported·H.R. 7721

CRACKDOWN Act of 2026

New Bill Targets States with High Child Care Overpayment Rates, Threatens Funding Cuts

Feb 26·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

Part of: Bill Targets State Child Care Payment Errors with Mandatory Funding Cuts

Next up: The House

The CRACKDOWN Act of 2026 has been reported by the House Committee on Education and Workforce and is now waiting for a vote on the House floor. No action has been taken on this bill since April 5, 2026. Because there has been no movement for three months, the bill is currently stalled.

Legislative Progress

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Law

Key Points

This bill, introduced by Mr. Grothman, targets "improper payments" in state child care programs. These are payments made to the wrong people, in the wrong amounts, or for the wrong reasons.
If a state has an error rate higher than 5% in one year, it must submit a formal plan to the federal government explaining how it will fix these mistakes and lower the rate for the next year.
If a state fails to stay under the 5% error limit for two years in a row, it could lose its federal child care funding. This money is used to help low-income families afford child care so parents can work or go to school.
To avoid losing money after two years of high errors, a state must prove to the government that it is either going to hit the 5% goal next year or is making significant progress on its cleanup plan.
The policy is designed to reduce waste and ensure that tax dollars are used correctly, but it could put child care services at risk in states that struggle to manage the program's paperwork.

EducationEconomy Finance

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works

Life & Work

Small child care providers could be indirectly harmed if states tighten eligibility rules or slow down payments to families in order to meet the 5% overpayment threshold. States under pressure to reduce error rates may add more paperwork and verification steps, which could delay reimbursements to small child care businesses that depend on timely subsidy payments to stay afloat.

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ImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

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Programs

Milestones

3 milestones6 actions

Apr 6, 2026House

Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 507.

The bill is now on the schedule for the full chamber to consider. It's in line for debate and a vote.

Apr 6, 2026House

Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Education and Workforce. H. Rept. 119-587.

Mar 5, 2026House

Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 19 - 15.

The committee approved this bill and is sending it to the full chamber for a vote. This is a significant step — most bills never get this far.

Mar 5, 2026House

Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held

Feb 26, 2026House

Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

Related News

2 articles

The Hill·Feb 26

Grothman Introduces CRACKDOWN Act to Curb Child Care Fraud

Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) introduced the CRACKDOWN Act on Thursday, aiming to reduce improper payments in federal child care programs. The bill mandates that states with error rates exceeding 5% must implement corrective action plans or risk losing federal funding for low-income families.

Center

Politico·Feb 27

Advocates Warn CRACKDOWN Act Could Leave Families Without Child Care

Critics of the newly introduced CRACKDOWN Act argue that the 5% error rate threshold is too punitive. They warn that threatening to pull federal funding from states could result in thousands of low-income families losing access to essential child care services if administrative errors occur.

Center Left

No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

CRACKDOWN Act of 2026

Bill NumberHR 7721

Congress119th Congress

ChamberHouse of Representatives

Latest ActionPlaced on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 507.

Data Sources

Congress.gov

Official legislative information

Read Full Bill Text

Sponsor

Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.