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HB 2420

SMART START WORKFORCE GRANT

104th Regular Session Introduced by Maura Hirschauer

Illinois HB 2420 creates Smart Start Workforce Grants to raise child care worker pay and stabilize providers, funded by future appropriations.

Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee
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Bill Summary · HB 2420

HB 2420 — “Smart Start Workforce Grant” (Illinois) — Summary

Status: Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee (as of 2025)
Introduced: February 4, 2025
Effective date (if enacted): July 1, 2025

Purpose

This bill amends the Smart Start Illinois Act to define eligibility and operational details for Smart Start Child Care Workforce Compensation (Smart Start Workforce Grants). The program’s stated goals are to stabilize community-based early childhood providers, raise compensation for the early childhood workforce, expand supply of high‑quality child care, and align providers to participate in other public funding streams.

Key provisions

  • Directs the Department of Human Services (and thereafter the Department of Early Childhood) to implement the Smart Start Child Care Workforce Compensation Program, subject to appropriation.
  • Establishes eligibility requirements for grant applicants (licensed day care centers, licensed day care homes, licensed group day care homes).
  • Defines “year‑round child care”: at least 8 consecutive hours/day, 5 days/week, for at least 47 weeks/year.
  • Sets minimum enrollment thresholds (measured in at least one month beginning on or after January of the previous calendar year and prior to application):
    • For children whose care is paid by Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), foster child care subsidies, or military subsidies:
    • Day care centers: at least 15% of licensed capacity
    • Day care homes: at least 1 child
    • Group day care homes: at least 2 children
    • If CCAP thresholds are not met, an applicant may qualify by meeting enrollment thresholds for either:
    • Children with an individualized education program (IEP): centers 10% capacity; homes 1; group homes 2
    • English learners (as defined in School Code): centers 10% capacity; homes 1; group homes 2
  • For licensed day care centers, eligibility is determined at the classroom level; eligible classrooms must:
    • Be able to receive Early Childhood Block Grant, Head Start, or Early Head Start funds
    • Not serve school‑age children
    • Meet minimum classroom sizes by age: infants/toddlers under 2 — min 4 children; 2‑year‑olds (or 2 & 3 mix) — min 8; 3–5 year olds — min 12
  • Requires administrative rules governing funding calculations, eligible expenses, required wage floors, application and monitoring, and reporting. Rules and program design are tied to a planning/transition year and to available appropriations.
  • Clarifies that Smart Start operates separately from and does not supplant the Child Care Assistance Program.

Who is affected

  • Primary: licensed child care providers (centers, family child care homes, group homes) seeking Smart Start Workforce Grants.
  • Secondary: early childhood workforce (potential wage increases), families (access to higher‑quality care), state agencies (DHS / Department of Early Childhood) administering the program.

Implementation & timeline

  • The bill takes effect July 1, 2025.
  • It directs implementation “by October 1, 2025, or as soon as practicable,” subject to appropriation, following a planning/transition year.
  • Administrative rules are required to set program specifics; the bill text references rule adoption tied to the planning year (the text contains multiple date references).

Potential impact

  • Establishes clear enrollment-based eligibility criteria that may prioritize providers serving subsidized children, children with IEPs, and English learners.
  • Classroom‑level eligibility for centers focuses funds on classrooms meeting minimum group sizes and programmatic criteria, which could concentrate resources in larger or mixed‑funded classrooms.
  • Subject‑to‑appropriation language means actual funding levels and scale depend on future legislative appropriations.

Note: The document submitted contains unrelated text (an Arizona appropriation item for a college credit incentive). This summary focuses on the Illinois Smart Start Workforce provisions in HB 2420.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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