# Virginia HB18: Employee Child Care Assistance Program; established, reports.

Virginia HB18, Employee Child Care Assistance Program; established, reports., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Adele Y. McClure (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-13 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0545)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB18-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB18
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Employee Child Care Assistance Program; established, reports.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2025-12-22
- Last action: 2026-04-13, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0545)
- Sponsor: Adele Y. McClure (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 7 (213 yes, 7 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 4

## Summary

Employee Child Care Assistance Program established. Establishes the Employee Child Care Assistance Program to provide matching funds in order to incentivize employers to contribute to the child care costs of their employees. The Program shall be administered by the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. To participate in the Program, an employer shall agree to make child care contributions to the eligible mixed delivery provider on behalf of the employee or to a third-party administrator, as defined by the bill, and shall provide any other information deemed necessary by the Foundation. The bill specifies that, to the extent funds are available, the Foundation shall issue a state match to a third-party administrator. Program funds shall be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis; however, the bill clarifies that the Foundation is encouraged to prioritize awards to proposals involving contributions from small businesses. The bill requires the Foundation to provide an interim report to the General Assembly by September 1, 2028, and a summative report to the General Assembly by September 1, 2030, on the effectiveness and impact of the Program. This bill is identical to SB 3.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Employer child care help with state match: benefit, low. The law creates a program that helps pay for child care when your employer chips in. The Virginia Early Childhood Foundation runs it and adds a state match set in the budget. Help goes only to eligible mixed‑delivery child care providers or through an approved administrator. The state budget sets w…
- Small businesses get priority for slots: benefit, low. Awards are first‑come, first‑served. The Foundation is encouraged to prioritize proposals that include small business contributions. A small business has fewer than 50 employees.
- Program aligns with mixed delivery, funds roll over: benefit, low. The Foundation can combine this program with mixed‑delivery child care efforts. Unspent money on June 30, 2027 and June 30, 2028 does not revert; it stays available for this program through June 30, 2030. The Foundation must report on results by September 1, 2028, and give a final report by Septemb…
- How employers join the child care program: mixed, low. To take part, an employer agrees to pay toward an employee’s child care and share needed info with the Foundation. An employer qualifies if it had at least one worker in Virginia in 20 or more weeks this year or last year. Only Foundation‑approved third‑party administrators, including Ready Region…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Adele Y. McClure (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Passed Senate Block Vote | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-05 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 39 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-05 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-04 | Senate | Reported from Finance and Appropriations | pass | 15 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-06 | House | Read third time and passed House | pass | 91 | 7 |   |
| 2026-02-02 | House | Reported from Appropriations with amendment(s) | pass | 22 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-30 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) | pass | 6 | 0 |   |

## Actions (33)

- 2026-04-13: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0545) (Governor)
- 2026-04-13: Approved by Governor-Chapter 545 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-03-25: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-25: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 25, 2026 (House)
- 2026-03-16: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB18) (House)
- 2026-03-14: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB18ER) (House)
- 2026-03-14: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-14: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-14: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-03-09: Passed Senate Block Vote (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-03-06: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-03-05: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-03-05: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-05: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Reported from Finance and Appropriations (15-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-09: Referred to Committee on Finance and Appropriations (Senate)
- 2026-02-09: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-06: Read third time and passed House (91-Y 7-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-06: Moved from Uncontested Calendar to Regular Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-05: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB18) (House)
- 2026-02-05: Engrossed by House as amended (House)
- 2026-02-05: committee amendments agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-05: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-04: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-02: House committee offered (House)
- 2026-02-02: Reported from Appropriations with amendment(s) (22-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-30: Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (6-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-30: House subcommittee offered (House)
- 2026-01-23: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB18) (House)
- 2026-01-15: Assigned HAPP sub: Elementary & Secondary Education (House)
- 2025-12-22: Referred to Committee on Appropriations (House)
- 2025-12-22: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26102136D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218676.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218675.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-14: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1208745.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1208744.PDF)
- Engrossed, 2026-02-05: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1108699.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1108698.PDF)
- Amendment, 2026-02-03: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1108623.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-02-02: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104815.HTML), [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1105499.HTML)
- Introduced, 2025-12-22: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081978.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081977.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Chaptered (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218676.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1218675.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1208745.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1208744.PDF)
- [Engrossed (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1108699.HTML)
- [Engrossed (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1108698.PDF)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1108623.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104815.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1105499.HTML)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081978.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1081977.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
- [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills)
- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB18-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).