§9410 State requirements

Summary

To get a grant, a State must follow several rules. The State must make sure money it gets can be approved by the State legislature under State law. The State must pick a Lead State Agency to run and watch over the grant and coordinate early learning programs. The State must apply to the Secretary when, how, and with the information the Secretary requires. The State must give out funds by competition across rural, urban, and suburban areas. The State must also help the Secretary create ways to check that Local Councils follow the rules. When giving grants to Local Councils, the State must fund a wide range of early learning programs and prefer councils that serve areas of greatest need and that show they will work together with other resources. Local Councils should favor projects that increase collaboration, offer continuous services across early ages, and help parents and caregivers. Every two years the State must review needs and resources, set measurable goals, award grants that match those goals, report progress each year, and if not making progress send a performance improvement plan and show reasonable progress to keep funding.