II 112th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 1778 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES November 1, 2011 Mr. Blumenthal introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To amend the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 to include the provision of diapers and diapering supplies among the activities for which funds may be employed to improve the quality of and access to child care.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Diaper Investment and Aid to Promote Economic Recovery Act or the DIAPER Act.

2.

Findings

Congress finds that— (1)access to a reliable supply of clean diapers is a medical necessity for the health and welfare of infants and toddlers, their families, and child and health care providers; (2)a supply of diapers is generally an eligibility requirement for infants and toddlers to participate in early childhood education programs; (3)providing a sufficient supply of diapers can cause economic hardship to needy families; (4)absent access to child care, parents and guardians of infants and toddlers cannot participate in the workforce, and that lack of access causes economic harm to many families; (5)providing diapering systems to needy infants and toddlers through child care programs furthers the national goals of improved health and sanitation for families and for staff in early childhood education and child care programs; and (6)making available clean diapers to needy infants and toddlers who would otherwise be prevented from participating in child care programs furthers the national goal of safe and quality child care, and therefore enables better implementation of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990.

3.

Provision of diapers as child care assistance

The Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9801 et seq.) is amended— (1)in section 658E(c)(3)(C) (42 U.S.C. 9858c(c)(3)(C)) by adding at the end the following: Provision of diapers and diapering supplies for use by eligible children within the State who receive or are offered child care services for which financial assistance is provided under this subchapter shall be considered a direct service and shall not be included in administrative costs.; (2)in section 658G (42 U.S.C. 9858e) is amended by adding at the end the following: Those improvement activities include the provision of diapers and diapering supplies to child care providers that receive funding under this subchapter, sufficient for the population of untrained children, each of whom is under the age of 3 and has a parent who receives or is offered financial assistance under this subchapter for the child involved.; and (3)in section 658P by inserting after paragraph (2) the following: (3)

Diaper-related terms

(A)

Diaper

The term diaper— (i)means an absorbent garment worn by infants and toddlers who are not toilet-trained or individuals who are incapable of controlling their bladder or bowel movements; and (ii)refers to— (I)a disposable diaper (as defined in clause (i)); and (II)a washable cloth diaper (as so defined) and the requisite diaper laundering and delivery services necessary to provide a sufficient number of such diapers for the corresponding number of untrained children in the eligible population. (B)

Diapering supplies

The term diapering supplies means items, including diaper wipes, and diaper cream, necessary for safe diapering. (C)

Untrained child

The term untrained child means an infant, toddler, or individual described in subparagraph (A)(i). .