§18203 Permissible uses of Fund

Summary

States must use the grant money to help pregnant and parenting teens and women. A State may give these funds to eligible colleges so they can set up or run services for pregnant and parenting students. The college money must add to, not replace, existing funding. Colleges that get money must apply to the State agency and must provide a non‑Federal match equal to 25 percent of the grant. That match can be cash or in‑kind (like services, space, supplies, or equipment). Colleges may use funds for things like campus and local needs assessments, checking on maternity coverage, housing, child care, flexible scheduling, parenting education, baby supplies, and counseling; finding and working with qualified service providers; helping students find services; and making referrals for prenatal care, delivery, infant or foster care, or adoption (only to providers who serve parents, prospective parents, pregnant women planning to parent or place a child for adoption, and parenting couples). Each year a funded college must send a report to the State by the date the State sets. The report must list spending, evaluate performance using standards the State sets, and describe how the office met student needs and how often students used it. At least 180 days before the college report is due, the State must tell colleges the performance standards and may set the report form. The State must also send an annual report to the Secretary listing how many colleges got funds and how many students each office served. A State may also give money to eligible high schools and community service centers to run similar services; those awards follow the same rules except the 25 percent match does not apply. A State may give funds to its Attorney General to help statewide offices provide intervention, accompaniment, and social supports for pregnant victims of domestic or sexual violence, and to provide technical assistance and training to governments, courts, law enforcement, health and social service professionals, nonprofits, and faith groups. That technical help includes identifying victims, assessing immediate safety and health effects and making safety plans, keeping medical/forensic records with privacy protections, and referring victims to appropriate service providers. An “eligible pregnant woman” means a woman who is pregnant when she becomes a victim or who was pregnant within the one‑year period before the victimization. States may also use funds to increase public awareness and education about available services, and the State decides limits on how much can be used for outreach.