H.R. 5363 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the House, sent to the Committee on Agriculture, Sep 15, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryPrioritizes childcare funding for rural areas
The bill asks the U.S. Department of Agriculture to create a new program that steers loans and grants toward childcare projects in farming and rural communities. The program would focus on improving childcare availability, quality, and affordability for young children in these areas, and would pay special attention to counties that depend heavily on farming. The USDA would also evaluate how well these projects work and report back to Congress.
How it affects you
If you live in a rural or farming-dependent community, this could mean more childcare options and potentially more affordable care for your young children, since the bill directs funding specifically to those areas. People in urban areas would not directly benefit from this initiative.
Read the official summary (Introduced in House, Sep 15, 2025)
Expanding Childcare in Rural America Act of 2025
This bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish the Expanding Childcare in Rural America Initiative to prioritize certain loans and grants that address childcare in agricultural and rural communities. Under the bill, childcare includes eligible programs that provide quality care and early education for young children who are in kindergarten or have not yet entered kindergarten.
Under the initiative, USDA must give priority to applicants that propose to use certain loans or grants to address the availability, quality, or costs of childcare in an agricultural or rural community. In addition, USDA must prioritize communities in farming-dependent counties and ensure a balanced geographical distribution of the benefits.
USDA must conduct a comprehensive quantitative and qualitative evaluation of the projects carried out under the initiative and submit a report to Congress.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionH. R. 5363
A BILL
Expanding Childcare in Rural America Act of 2025
Sponsor: Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA-3) · Introduced Sep 15, 2025 · Agriculture and Food · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Dec 2, 2025: “Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development.”