# 119-s-1285: Building Child Care for a Better Future Act

119-s-1285, Building Child Care for a Better Future Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] (D-OR); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2025-12-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1285
- As of: 2025-12-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-1285
- Congress: 119
- Title: Building Child Care for a Better Future Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-04-03
- Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] (D-OR)
- Cosponsors: 11
- Policy area: Families
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2025-12-21

## Summary

**Expands and reorganizes federal child care funding to grow supply, raise quality, and strengthen the workforce.** It would restructure the Child Care and Development Block Grant program and authorize large, ongoing grants and targeted investments to increase access and support providers. - Families: Low‑income households would get expanded child care assistance, a new grant track for high‑need areas, and funding for capital and facility improvements to increase slots. - Workforce and facilities: Funds would support workforce development and require prevailing wage rules like Davis‑Bacon for construction and renovation paid with program dollars to raise job standards. - State, tribal, and territorial rules: Would start with a $20.0 billion FY2026 appropriation and fund future years at the prior level or with inflation increases. It would reserve funds for tribal grants, set aside small shares for research and technical assistance, and impose state maintenance‑of‑effort spending minimums plus annual reporting and evaluations. *Would increase federal spending by authorizing a $20.0 billion FY2026 appropriation and ongoing inflation‑linked funding.*

## Cosponsors (11)

- Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA] (D-MA), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] (I-VT), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN] (D-MN), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL] (D-IL), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kim, Andy [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] (D-CA), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] (D-MA), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Shaheen, Jeanne [D-NH] (D-NH), 2025-04-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR] (D-OR), 2025-05-19T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Big new federal child care funding: benefit, high. This bill would provide $20 billion for child care grants in FY2026. Each year after, the amount would rise by the CPI-U or stay the same. Five percent would go to tribes and tribal organizations. Four percent would go to territories. Up to 0.5% would fund technical help and 0.5% would fund researc…
- Grants to expand child care: benefit, high. This bill would create a separate $5 billion grant program each year to expand child care in areas of particular need. The Department would pay lead agencies quarterly after they submit an approved plan. Five percent of each grant pool would go to tribes, 4 percent to territories, up to 0.5% for te…

## Related bills

- 119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-s-2823: FAMILY Act
- 119-s-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act
- 119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026
- 119-s-1503: Equality Act

## Sources
- [119-s-1285 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1285)

## Related
- [119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5066)
- [119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3990)
- [119-s-2823: FAMILY Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2823)
- [119-s-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-51)
- [119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5108)
- [119-s-1503: Equality Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1503)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1285 (as of 2025-12-21).