PRINTER'S NO. 1557
No. 1259 Session of 1989
INTRODUCED BY RHOADES, HESS, LOEPER, JUBELIRER, JONES, REIBMAN,
SHUMAKER, STOUT, GREENWOOD, BELL, SALVATORE, LEMMOND, FATTAH,
MADIGAN AND HELFRICK, OCTOBER 2, 1989
REFERRED TO EDUCATION, OCTOBER 2, 1989
AN ACT
1 Providing for the establishment, implementation and
2 administration of a Head Start Supplemental Assistance
3 Program.
4 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
5 hereby enacts as follows:
6 Section 1. Short title.
7 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Head Start
8 Supplemental Assistance Act.
9 Section 2. Legislative purpose.
10 (a) Findings.--The General Assembly finds as follows:
11 (1) Project Head Start, a 25-year-old Federal program,
12 has been successful in preparing low-income preschool
13 children for integration into existing scholastic programs.
14 (2) By concentrating energies in the areas of education,
15 health, social services and parental involvement, Project
16 Head Start has prevented future social costs by correcting or
17 detecting a problem at its earliest and most easily solved
18 stage.
1 (3) Notwithstanding these outstanding achievements,
2 Project Head Start is currently estimated to be reaching only
3 25% of all eligible children within this Commonwealth.
4 (b) Purpose.--The General Assembly, through this legislative
5 initiative, intends to establish a five-year supplemental
6 financial assistance program which will assist existing Head
7 Start providers to expand facilities and Head Start services to
8 care for additional eligible low-income children.
9 Section 3. Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program.
10 (a) Establishment.--The Department of Public Welfare shall,
11 after consultation with the Department of Education and the
12 Department of Health, establish, implement and administer a
13 five-year program consistent with Federal Head Start standards
14 to provide, by means of grants or the purchase of service
15 contracts, supplemental financial assistance to the existing
16 providers of Federal Head Start services to enable them to
17 provide additional Head Start services to other eligible low-
18 income children.
19 (b) Criteria.--The Department of Public Welfare, in awarding
20 grants or entering into contracts with existing Head Start
21 providers, shall apply the following criteria:
22 (1) The provider's ability to expand staff, space and
23 services to accommodate additional children.
24 (2) The provider's ability to provide 20% of the
25 approved costs of the programs or activities assisted under
26 this act from non-Federal and non-State sources. This 20%
27 contribution may be in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated,
28 including plant, equipment or services.
29 (3) The provider's past performance in providing a
30 quality Head Start Program to its clients.
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1 (4) The need for additional Head Start services in the
2 provider's area, where need is to be determined by the
3 percentage of eligible children who are not served in the
4 area.
5 The Department of Public Welfare shall require the provider to
6 meet the criteria under paragraphs (1) and (2). Thereafter, the
7 Department of Public Welfare shall balance these criteria,
8 giving equal emphasis to each one.
9 (c) Administration.--The Department of Public Welfare shall
10 award the grants or enter into contracts and may administer the
11 Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program or may contract with
12 the Federal regional office to administer the grant or contract
13 with the existing Head Start provider.
14 Section 4. Amount of supplemental assistance.
15 The Department of Public Welfare shall not award grants or
16 enter into purchase of service contracts in excess of the limits
17 prescribed by this section for each fiscal year. The amount of
18 supplemental assistance for each fiscal year shall be as
19 follows:
20 (1) For fiscal year 1990-1991, the sum of $5,800,000.
21 (2) For fiscal year 1991-1992, the sum of $8,700,000.
22 (3) For fiscal year 1992-1993, the sum of $13,050,000.
23 (4) For fiscal year 1993-1994, the sum of $19,575,000.
24 (5) For fiscal year 1994-1995 and each fiscal year
25 thereafter, the sum of $29,362,000.
26 Section 5. Rules and regulations.
27 The Department of Public Welfare shall promulgate the rules
28 and regulations that are necessary to establish, implement and
29 administer the Head Start Supplemental Assistance Program.
30 Section 6. Expiration.
19890S1259B1557 - 3 -
1 This act shall expire June 30, 1995, unless extended by the
2 General Assembly.
3 Section 7. Effective date.
4 This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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