[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5364 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5364
To support rural families.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
August 7, 2026
Mrs. Hyde-Smith introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To support rural families.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Mothers and Fathers Choice
Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) After generations of unfair policies, failing
academics, poor health outcomes, and struggling economies, many
residents of rural communities across the United States feel
trapped in a system that puts additional burdens on its
citizens.
(2) Children entering kindergarten who live in rural
communities often face barriers due to lower incomes and lack
of access to quality early childhood education providers. These
barriers increase the chance that rural children may be
categorized as academically under prepared.
(3) According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, the economic
impact of the childcare gap in rural areas falls between
$32,790,000,000 and $49,930,000,000. This lack of childcare
options makes it more difficult for rural parents to return to
work.
(4) Schools attended by rural students offer limited access
to advanced coursework, offering less science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics (referred to in this Act as
``STEM'') teaching capacity and fewer STEM extracurricular
activities. In turn, rural students are significantly less
likely to enroll in STEM degree programs at the college level.
(5) According to the National Student Clearinghouse, only
55 percent of rural students enrolled in college directly out
of high school in 2022, compared with 64 percent of suburban
students and 59 percent of urban students. Also, only 80
percent of college students from rural communities continue
their higher education into the second year, compared with 85
percent of suburban students and 81 percent of urban students.
(6) Longitudinal studies of academic growth indicate the
increased importance of summer academic opportunities for rural
children, who suffer larger academic ``summer loss'' than non-
rural students. As a result, while rural students start
kindergarten slightly ahead of non-rural students, they fall
behind by middle school, according to the American Educational
Research Association.
(7) Due to the lack of high-quality educational supports in
rural schools, rural students who struggle to read are less
likely to catch up than non-rural students. According to the
University of New Hampshire, the average reading achievement of
a rural third grader who scores in the tenth percentile of
reading achievement in kindergarten is approximately 6 to 7
points lower than the reading achievement of the average
suburban and urban third grader with comparable kindergarten
achievement and socioeconomic background.
(8) Between the 2017-2018 and 2021-2022 school years,
chronic absenteeism increased 47 percent among rural students,
compared to 44 percent for students in urban districts.
(9) According to the Health Resources & Services
Administration, rural children are less likely to have one or
more preventive medical and dental visits in the past 12 months
(59.6 percent) than urban children (66.7 percent). This
disparity holds at all levels of household income. Rural
children are also more likely to be overweight or obese (36
percent) relative to urban children (31.6 percent).
(10) According to the American College of Education, job
training program completion rates vary significantly between
urban and rural areas. Rural populations face additional
barriers due to geographic isolation, limited broadband access,
fewer job training options and smaller training cohorts that
restrict program availability. Rural community colleges often
struggle to maintain enough enrollment to offer identical
certifications.
(11) Roughly 1 in 7 public high school students fails to
earn their high school diploma in 4 years. A 16- to 24-year-old
coming from a high-income family is about 7 times as likely to
have completed high school as a 16- to 24-year-old coming from
a low-income family.
(12) The average national cost to confine a youth in a
juvenile justice facility is $214,620 per year. Comparatively,
per pupil annual spending for a student in kindergarten through
grade 12 is only $17,620, however spending in States with
largely rural populations tends to be in the $13,000-$11,000
range per student.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to establish a 10-year,
place-based Federal program designed to strengthen families in rural
and tribal communities by providing resources to enhance educational
and employment choices that strengthen communities, including by--
(1) promoting evidence-based literacy and academic success,
including through--
(A) kindergarten readiness;
(B) reading and mathematics proficiency;
(C) improving school attendance and reducing
chronic absenteeism;
(D) on-time high school graduation; and
(E) alignment of career and technical education
pathways with local work opportunities;
(2) empowering family choice, including through--
(A) supporting household income, employment, and
financial stability through meaningful workforce
development;
(B) childcare and after-school programs to support
working parents;
(C) broadband-enabled access to telehealth and
mobile health services;
(D) distance learning opportunities for workforce
development;
(E) transportation support for childcare and career
stability; and
(F) emphasis on the role of the mother and father
in the family; and
(3) returning control of services to the States, including
through--
(A) durable rural service networks across
education, health, workforce, and early childhood
sectors;
(B) mental and behavioral health services;
(C) substance use recovery supports;
(D) child abuse prevention and services;
(E) support for rural businesses and economic
growth;
(F) data systems and shared dashboards; and
(G) healthcare and child care workforces.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Hub and spoke site.--The term ``hub and spoke site''
means central, permanent facilities (referred to as a ``hub
site'') operated by an eligible entity from which services
funded under this Act are coordinated and delivered to families
in the service area on an ongoing basis, and affiliated
locations (each referred to as a ``spoke site''), which may
include mobile units, partner facilities, schools, health
clinics, or other community locations, through which the
eligible entity or partners of the eligible entity deliver a
subset of those services to families in the service area. An
eligible entity may operate more than one hub and spoke site
within its service area.
(2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
(A) a lead entity that is--
(i) a nonprofit organization that--
(I) has its headquarters in a rural
area; and
(II) has not less than 10 years of
positive measurable outcomes with
respect to one or more activities
described in section 2(b); or
(ii) a Tribal government or organization
authorized by a Tribal government to serve as a
lead entity for carrying out a grant under this
Act; and
(B) continuous active partners, which may include--
(i) a nonprofit organization or
governmental agency serving students in
kindergarten through grade 12;
(ii) an early childcare provider (defined
as an early childhood education program under
section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1003));
(iii) a health or behavioral healthcare
provider;
(iv) an economic development agency; or
(v) a local or Tribal government.
(3) Family support hub.--The term ``family support hub''
means a location that provides family-based services, including
services described in section 4(c)(1), that are provided by the
lead entity or a partner entity of the eligible entity
receiving funds under this Act. A hub site may serve as a
family support hub.
(4) Rural area.--The term ``rural area'' means--
(A) a micropolitan urban area of 10,000 to 49,999
residents or a rural tract outside of an urban area, as
provided by the United States Department of
Agriculture;
(B) a county that has a population of less than
50,000 people; or
(C) lands designated as tribal or frontier
counties.
(5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Health and Human Services.
SEC. 4. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED; USES OF FUNDS.
(a) Program Authorized.--
(1) In general.--From amounts appropriated to carry out
this Act, the Secretary shall award planning and implementation
grants to eligible entities to enable those eligible entities
to carry out the activities described in this section.
(2) Reservation of funds.--From amounts appropriated to
carry out this Act, the Secretary shall reserve 10 percent for
such planning and implementation grants for eligible entities
described in section 3(2)(A)(ii).
(3) Administrative costs.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary shall reserve not
less than 5 percent and not more than 7 percent of
amounts appropriated to carry out this Act for the
costs of administration, evaluation, and technical
assistance.
(B) Technical assistance provider.--From the
amounts reserved under subparagraph (A), not less than
30 percent shall be used to award a grant, on a
competitive basis, to a single national entity to serve
as the technical assistance provider for program
grantees. Such entity shall have--
(i) a strong national record of supporting
communities in improving child and student
outcomes through place-based strategies;
(ii) a nationally accessible technology
platform for efficiently scaling capabilities
of place-based implementation;
(iii) an externally validated framework for
building cross sector partnerships resulting in
better outcomes for children and families; and
(iv) experience supporting the diverse
needs of rural and Tribal place-based
partnerships.
(4) Allocation between planning and implementation.--Of the
amounts appropriated under section 10 for a fiscal year and
remaining after the reservation of funds under paragraph (3),
the Secretary shall allocate 10 percent for planning grants
awarded under subsection (b) and 90 percent for implementation
grants awarded under subsection (c). The reservation in
paragraph (2) shall be applied proportionally within each of
the planning grant and implementation grant funding
allocations.
(b) Planning Grants.--The Secretary shall award not more than 3
planning grants to eligible entities for a 12-month period, in an
amount equal to not more than $500,000 each, to enable eligible
entities receiving a planning grant to--
(1) develop goals, objectives, and activities;
(2) collect baseline data; and
(3) secure necessary partnerships and agreements.
(c) Implementation Grants.--The Secretary shall award not more than
6 implementation grants to eligible entities for a 10-year period, in
an amount equal to $6,000,000 each per year (subject to appropriations
and performance requirements). An eligible entity that receives an
implementation grant under this section shall use grant funds over a
10-year period to carry out activities through hub and spoke sites in
not fewer than 4 of the 6 categories listed in paragraphs (1) through
(6), including not less than 1 activity under paragraph (2) or (3) and
not less than 1 activity under paragraph (4) or (5):
(1) Support fixed or mobile family support hubs, which
shall include one or more of the following:
(A) Carrying out case management services and
providing referrals to support family choices in the
pursuit of meeting a family's educational, health, and
workforce needs.
(B) Conducting home visits to help families develop
plans to reach their personal goals, and providing
family outreach to support activities to meet those
goals.
(C) Providing parenting and caregiver guidance to
empower parental choice.
(D) Providing mental health and substance use
disorder screening or treatment.
(E) Providing telehealth services to remote
communities.
(F) Providing legal or financial counseling.
(2) Support early childhood services, which shall include
one or more of the following:
(A) Improving infant or toddler capacity at
childcare sites within the service area.
(B) Family, friend, and neighbor caregiver support
systems to raise individual awareness of options in
support of informed family choices.
(C) Coordinating services across State, local, and
provider networks to reduce duplication and improve
efficiencies.
(D) Providing transportation for childcare access.
(3) Supports for students in kindergarten through grade 12,
either in school or after school, which shall include one or
more of the following:
(A) Evidence-based literacy programming and
tutoring services.
(B) Attendance interventions.
(C) Tutoring in reading or mathematics.
(D) After-school programming.
(E) Career and technical education vertical
alignment with workforce partners.
(F) School-based mental health services.
(4) Economic mobility activities, which shall include one
or more of the following:
(A) Apprenticeships and work-based learning, except
that participation in a Department of Labor Registered
Apprenticeship shall not be required.
(B) Childcare-linked training.
(C) Small business coaching.
(D) Workforce training.
(5) Health access services, which shall include one or more
of the following:
(A) Community health workers.
(B) Evidence-based substance use disorder
treatment.
(C) Maternal safety bundles, as determined by the
Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(D) Mobile and tele-health services.
(6) Infrastructure enablers, which shall include one or
more of the following:
(A) Broadband hotspots.
(B) Local data systems.
(C) Partnerships with transportation companies to
increase availability.
(D) Childcare facility upgrades.
(E) Driver's education and transportation vouchers.
(d) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive the requirement in subsection
(c) to address not fewer than 4 categories of activities if--
(1) an applicant demonstrates in the application that the
eligible entity serves an extremely high-need or tribal area;
and
(2) the Secretary finds that a narrower set of activities
will more effectively achieve the stated program outcomes.
SEC. 5. FAMILY GOVERNANCE AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
(a) In General.--Each eligible entity receiving a grant under this
Act shall establish a Family Advisory Council, which shall consist of
not less than 7 members, not less than 40 percent of whom shall be
parents or caregivers who reside in the area that will be served by the
eligible entity through the grant under this Act.
(b) Duties.--Each Family Advisory Council shall vote on
recommendations regarding the budget and plans of the eligible entity
regarding the activities carried out with a grant under this Act.
SEC. 6. APPLICATION; SELECTION CRITERIA.
(a) Application.--An eligible entity desiring to receive a grant
under this Act shall submit an application to the Secretary not later
than 45 days after the publication of a Notice of Funding Availability.
The Secretary shall publish a Notice of Funding Availability not later
than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and, to the
extent practicable, not earlier than 60 days after such date, and shall
award grants not later than 120 days after the close of the application
period. Applications shall contain such information as the Secretary
may require, including, at a minimum, each of the following:
(1) Abstract.
(2) Proposal Narrative.
(3) Organizational Capacity.
(4) Work Plan.
(5) Budget and Budget Justification.
(6) Letters of Commitment and Support.
(7) Staffing Plan.
(b) Selection.--In selecting eligible entities to receive an
implementation grant or planning grant, the Secretary shall consider
the following, with the following percentages of weighted
consideration:
(1) Need (20 percent).
(2) Family engagement and governance (10 percent).
(3) Integrated service plan (15 percent).
(4) Workforce and partner capacity (10 percent).
(5) Prior experience and evidence of capability (25
percent).
(6) Evidence use and literacy alignment (10 percent).
(7) Sustainability and match strategy (10 percent).
(c) Priority.--In selecting eligible entities to receive a grant
under this Act, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities
that--
(1) are located in counties with a population of less than
50,000 people; or
(2) serve communities that are classified as distressed by
the Economic Innovation Group, as of the date of enactment of
this Act, or as subsequently updated by the Economic Innovation
Group's Distressed Communities Index.
SEC. 7. PERFORMANCE DATA AND EVALUATION; REPORTING.
(a) Grant Period.--An implementation grant under this Act shall be
for a 10-year period, if the eligible entity receiving the grant
successfully completes a performance review under this section after
year 3 and year 6 of the grant period.
(b) Reporting.--Not less than twice per year, each eligible entity
that receives a grant under this Act shall prepare and submit to the
Secretary a report that contains, at a minimum, the following
information with respect to the populations served by the eligible
entity using grant funds:
(1) Data about household income, employment, and food
security.
(2) Data about developmental screening, kindergarten
readiness, and childcare availability and affordability.
(3) Data about chronic absenteeism in elementary and
secondary school, literacy rates in grade 3, mathematics
proficiency rates in grade 8, and high school graduation rates.
(4) Data about illegal substance use, dependency recovery
engagement, avoidable emergency department visits, and maternal
health indicators.
SEC. 8. FUNDING.
(a) Matching Funds.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), each eligible
entity that receives an implementation grant awarded under this
Act shall--
(A) have zero matching requirement for years 1
through 3 of the grant period;
(B) contribute an amount equal to 10 percent of the
amount of such grant funds for years 4 through 6 of the
grant period; and
(C) contribute an amount equal to 20 percent of the
amount of such grant funds for years 7 through 10 of
the grant period.
(2) Cash or in-kind.--Matching requirements may be met
through cash or in kind contributions.
(b) Supplement Not Supplant.--An eligible entity shall use Federal
funds received under this Act only to supplement the funds that would,
in the absence of such Federal funds, be made available from other
Federal, State, and local sources to carry out activities under this
Act, and not to supplant such funds.
(c) Flexibility.--An eligible entity receiving a grant under this
Act may coordinate funds received under this Act with funds received
under programs administered by the Department of Education, the
Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Agriculture,
the Department of Justice, and the Department of Labor, provided that
such funds are used in a manner that is consistent with the
requirements of each applicable program and that grant funds under this
Act are used in accordance with the supplement-not-supplant requirement
under subsection (c).
SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act such
sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2027 and each of the following
9 fiscal years.
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