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Congress·In Committee·S. 3845

After Hours Child Care Act

Child Care: Expanding Options for Night and Weekend Workers

Legislative Progress

Senate
House
President
Law

Key Points

  • This bill creates a new $10 million fund to help child care centers stay open during nontraditional hours. This includes evenings, nights, and weekends, or for parents who get their work schedules at the last minute. The goal is to help parents keep their jobs and get promoted even if they do not work a standard 9-to-5 shift.
  • Child care providers can apply for grants ranging from $25,000 to $500,000. They can use this money to hire more staff, buy new equipment, improve their buildings, or even start brand-new programs. Businesses can also partner with providers to set up child care right at the workplace for employees who work late or on weekends.
  • To get the federal money, the local provider or business must cover 25% of the costs themselves. The program is designed as a five-year test to see how well these grants help families. Every two years, the government will report back to Congress on how many children were helped and if it made it easier for parents to stay in the workforce.

Impact Analysis

Govbase has not yet run an impact analysis on this legislation.

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Feb 11, 2026Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

Feb 11, 2026

Introduced in Senate

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

Votes

No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.

News

No related news coverage found for this legislation yet.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

After Hours Child Care Act

Bill NumberS 3845
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(4)
D: 3R: 1

Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.