# 119-s-5540: PREP Act of 2026

119-s-5540, PREP Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Kaine, Tim [D-VA] (D-VA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-22).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5540
- As of: 2026-10-22
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-5540
- Congress: 119
- Title: PREP Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-09-24
- Sponsor: Sen. Kaine, Tim [D-VA] (D-VA)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Education
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-10-22

## Summary

**Create competitive partnerships and yearlong residencies to prepare, mentor, and retain teachers and school leaders, with an emphasis on high‑need, rural, and underrepresented communities.** The title funds residency models, Grow Your Own pipelines, and leadership programs tied to measurable preparation and retention outcomes. - Teachers and prospective teachers: Requires year‑long preservice clinical or residency experiences with mentoring, a living stipend or salary for residents, and a service agreement to teach full time for at least 3 years in a high‑need school. Programs must award a master’s and full certification before completion where applicable and include supports for special education and English learners. - School leaders and districts: Grants fund preservice leadership training, mentoring, induction, and targeted recruitment of mid‑career and underrepresented candidates, with priority for high‑need LEAs and rural areas. Partnerships must collect retention and working‑conditions data to inform local improvement. - Colleges, MSIs, and States: Institutions receiving federal student aid must set goals to address shortage areas and align programs with partnership elements. Grants run 5 years, generally require a 100 percent non‑Federal match (waiver possible), cap administrative costs at 2 percent, set Hawkins Centers grants at a minimum of $500,000, and trigger scaling if title funding reaches $100 million.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Sen. Collins, Susan M. [R-ME] (R-ME), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Grants and scholarships for teachers: benefit, medium. This bill would create competitive Hawkins Centers of Excellence grants to improve teacher and leader training. Each Hawkins grant would be at least $500,000 and could fund need‑based scholarships up to the cost of attendance for tuition, room and board, licensing, books, and related expenses. Reci…
- Paid teacher residencies and supports: benefit, medium. This bill would fund year‑long teaching residencies where residents teach alongside an effective teacher while finishing required coursework. Partnerships could pay living stipends or salaries, mentor stipends, release time, and faculty workload credit, and would provide induction supports for at l…
- State review and reporting for programs: mixed, medium. This bill would require States to assess teacher and leader preparation programs and publish annual lists of low‑performing and at‑risk programs. If a State withdrew approval or ended State support for a program for low performance, that program would not be able to accept students using federal st…
- Grants for local educator partnerships: mixed, medium. This bill would create competitive five‑year Partnership Grants to prepare and support teachers, school leaders, and early‑childhood educators. A partnership would generally get only one grant in a five‑year period, and the Secretary could cancel grants that did not make substantial progress by the…
- Higher education funding and duties: mixed, medium. This bill would raise several Higher Education Act authorizations, including replacing a $255 million authorization with $265 million for fiscal year 2027 and each year after, and increasing other specified program authorizations. It would also require certain institutions receiving HEA institution…

## Related bills

- 119-s-2120: Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2025
- 119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act
- 119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act
- 119-s-3492: Essential Caregivers Act of 2025
- 119-s-5283: Momnibus Act
- 119-s-4578: Gateway to Careers Act of 2026

## Sources
- [119-s-5540 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5540)

## Related
- [119-s-2120: Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2120)
- [119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2819)
- [119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1748)
- [119-s-3492: Essential Caregivers Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3492)
- [119-s-5283: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5283)
- [119-s-4578: Gateway to Careers Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4578)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5540 (as of 2026-10-22).