[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5774 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5774
To amend the Head Start Act to protect Head Start from proposals to
eliminate the program and restore the Head Start program's regional
offices, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 17, 2025
Ms. Leger Fernandez (for herself, Mrs. Hayes, and Mr. Carson)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Education and Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Head Start Act to protect Head Start from proposals to
eliminate the program and restore the Head Start program's regional
offices, and for other purposes.
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 ``Every Child Deserves a Head Start
Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that the Head Start program--
(1) is an important program that has existed since 1965 to
ensure eligible children receive an opportunity to enhance
their cognitive, social, and emotional development; and
(2) has retained broad bipartisan Congressional support
because it serves children in every congressional district by--
(A) creating a learning environment that supports
children's growth in language, literacy, mathematics,
science, social and emotional functioning, creative
arts, physical skills, and approaches to learning; and
(B) providing to eligible children and their
families health, educational, nutritional, social, and
other services that are determined, based on family
needs assessments, to be necessary.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO THE HEAD START ACT.
The Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9801 et seq.) is amended by inserting
after section 640 the following:
``SEC. 640A. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF HEAD START.
``(a) Establishment.--There is hereby established the Office of
Head Start of the Administration for Children and Families, or any
successor agency, of the Department of Health and Human services,
including the central office and 12 regional offices, that operated in
the Office of Head Start immediately before January 20, 2025.
``(b) Structure, Staffing, and Functions of the Office of Head
Start.--The Office of Head Start established in subsection (a) shall--
``(1) reinstate or retain the internal organizational
structure in place at the Office of Head Start immediately
before January 20, 2025;
``(2) ensure the Office of Head Start meets and sustains
full-time equivalent staffing levels of personnel that are not
less than the personnel staffing levels of the Office of Head
Start immediately before January 20, 2025; and
``(3) carry out the functions of the Office of Head Start,
including the overall direction, policy, budget planning and
development, and administration and oversight of Head Start
program operations authorized under the Head Start Act,
immediately before January 20, 2025.
``(c) Structure, Functions, and Staffing of the Regional Offices.--
Each regional office established under subsection (a) shall be--
``(1) headed by a Regional Program Manager who reports to
the Director of the Program Operations Division, and be
organized consistent with the organizational structure in place
immediately before January 20, 2025, with--
``(A) regions I through X, located in the 10 ACF
geographical regions, focusing primarily on grants
operating in their respective regions;
``(B) region XI, located at the Office of Head
Start central office, focusing primarily on American
Indian and Alaskan Native Head Start grants; and
``(C) region XII, located at the Office of Head
Start central office, focusing primarily on Migrant and
Seasonal Head Start grants for agencies that serve the
children and families of migrant and seasonal farm
workers;
``(2) responsible for the same functions as they were
before January 20, 2025, including--
``(A) administering funding, ongoing oversight and
monitoring, and training and technical assistance to
the grant recipient agencies that provide services to
Head Start children and families; and
``(B) providing ongoing management of Regional Head
Start program operations, including State Collaboration
grants, and liaising within each Region to the Office
of Child Care and the Office of Grants Management; and
``(3) staffed at full-time equivalent personnel levels that
are not less than the full-time equivalent personnel levels in
place in each regional office immediately before January 20,
2025.
``(d) Limitations on Authority To Restructure the Office of Head
Start, Including the Central Office and 12 Regional Offices, and To
Reduce the Workforce.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services may
not--
``(1) modify the structure, functions, or responsibilities
for the Office of Head Start and its staff, including the
central office and 12 regional offices; or
``(2) reduce the full-time equivalent employment levels
established under this section for the Office of Head Start,
including within the central office and 12 regional offices,
established in subsection (a), subject to the availability of
funds.
``(e) Notice.--Not later than 60 days before the Secretary of
Health and Human Services submits to the President a plan under which
the Secretary proposes to take an action that is subject to a
limitation under subsection (d), the Secretary shall--
``(1) transmit such plan to the Committee on Education and
Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate; and
``(2) make available to the public a copy of such plan and
a justification that supports taking such action, and an
explanation of how the Office of Head Start will support Head
Start agencies that could be affected by such action.''.
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