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119-hr-2957119th CongressWALLET

STRONG Support for Children Act of 2025

Sponsored By: Representative Pressley, Ayanna [D-MA-7]

Introduced

Summary

This bill would create a federal program to prevent and mitigate childhood trauma by using data-driven analysis to target high-need communities and fund trauma-informed services for children and families.

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  • Families and children: Would fund voluntary, noncoercive services for children ages 0–17 and their caregivers, including home visiting, mental health and substance use supports, housing help, economic and nutrition supports, and school-based early childhood mental health supports.
  • Early childhood and prenatal focus: Would establish care coordination grants for children 0–5 and prenatal people, with at least 9 and up to 40 grants of $250,000 to $1,000,000 each and $15.0 million authorized per year for five years.
  • State and local health departments: Would let state and local health departments compete for up to 5 large data-analysis grants, each up to $9.5 million and lasting up to 7 years, to identify high-risk census tracts and implement strategies.
  • Tribal and equity provisions: Includes tribal consultation, at least a 10% set-aside for Indian Tribes in the care coordination funding, and requirements for culturally specific, gender-responsive, and reparative approaches available regardless of immigration status.
  • Data, limits, and evaluation: Would prioritize system-dynamic modeling for area-level targeting, cap data-analysis spending at 25% in the first 24 months and 10% thereafter, forbid using data to target individuals or increase law enforcement, and require model and program evaluations within 36 months and 6 years respectively.

*Would authorize about $130 million in new federal grants and evaluations across the programs, increasing federal spending if appropriated.*

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

3 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.

Care coordination for young children and caregivers

The bill would create grants to local governments and Tribes to coordinate care for children ages 0–5 at risk of trauma and their caregivers. Grants would be $250,000 to $1,000,000 per year, with 9–40 awards, and $15 million a year authorized for five years; at least 10% would go to Tribes. Funds could pay for risk assessments and centralized intake, care coordinators, training, referrals, help with rides or child care, and technology or internet for telehealth. At least half of services would happen in community settings and must be accessible to low‑income, homeless or housing‑insecure, and rural families; spending on databases would be capped at 30% of the grant. Grantees would need to protect privacy, supplement (not replace) other funding, report results by year four, and could not use funds to increase policing, make participation a condition of other benefits, or use data to make case‑by‑case decisions.

Defines childhood trauma and coordination services

The bill would define “adverse childhood experiences” broadly. It would include abuse, neglect, food insecurity, poor nutrition, witnessing violence, foster care involvement, a parent’s substance use or mental illness, incarceration, immigration detention or deportation, discrimination, systemic trauma, multigenerational poverty, and natural disasters. It would also define “care coordination” for children ages 0–5 and their caregivers, including prenatal people. These definitions would guide who could get services under the new programs.

Data-driven support to prevent childhood trauma

The bill would let HHS give up to five long‑term grants to State or local health departments to use data to prevent and reduce childhood trauma in high‑risk areas. Each grant could be up to $9.5 million for up to seven years; Congress would authorize $47.5 million for grants and $7.5 million for evaluation for fiscal years 2025–2032. At least 25% of each grant would go to community subgrants, data‑analysis costs would be capped (25% in the first 24 months, then 10% a year), and admin costs would be capped at 5%. Funded help could include home visiting, parenting support, mental health and substance use care, housing and economic supports, violence‑prevention, and services for LGBTQ+ youth; all services would be voluntary and open regardless of ability to pay, health, immigration status, sexual orientation or gender identity, or prior justice involvement. The bill would bar using data to target individual families, increasing law‑enforcement activity, enabling conversion therapy, or requiring service participation; Medicaid‑covered services would need payment and participation agreements.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Pressley, Ayanna [D-MA-7]

MA • D

Cosponsors

  • Rep. Thanedar, Shri [D-MI-13]

    MI • D

    Sponsored 4/17/2025

  • Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large]

    DC • D

    Sponsored 4/17/2025

  • Rep. Tlaib, Rashida [D-MI-12]

    MI • D

    Sponsored 4/17/2025

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

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