The bill amends various provisions related to early childhood education and care in Iowa, with a focus on enhancing the statewide preschool program. It introduces community-based providers as approved participants, allowing them to offer high-quality preschool instruction alongside school districts. The bill establishes a new definition for community-based providers, outlining their responsibilities, including participation in data collection and professional development for preschool teachers. Additionally, it modifies funding provisions to ensure that state preschool funding can be utilized by both school districts and community-based providers, while emphasizing that such funding should not be used for facility construction. The legislation also includes provisions for a child care continuum partnership grants pilot program and mandates the state board to adopt rules ensuring high-quality standards for preschool programs.

Furthermore, the bill updates the responsibilities and structure of child development services, particularly for at-risk children aged three to four years, by replacing the "child development coordinating council" with the "department of education" for oversight and grant-awarding responsibilities. It emphasizes developmentally appropriate practices and parental involvement while introducing a requirement for the department to review effective curricula for prekindergarten programs. The bill modifies funding allocations for child development services, streamlining the grant-awarding process and encouraging flexibility in evaluating programs. Additionally, it establishes a preschool accountability system to assess developmental outcomes and aligns early learning standards with existing quality rating systems, ultimately aiming to improve the quality and accessibility of early childhood education and care services in Iowa.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 256C.1, 256C.3, 257.16, 256C.4, 256C.5, 17A.4, 256.9, 256.163, 256A.3, 279.49, 256A.5, 237A.26, 262.71, 273.2, 279.51, 256A.2, 279.60, 256I.4, 256I.6, 225A.4
Reprinted: 256.163, 256C.1, 256C.3, 257.16, 256C.4, 256C.5, 17A.4, 256.9, 256A.3, 279.49, 256A.5, 237A.26, 262.71, 273.2, 279.51, 256A.2, 279.60, 256I.4, 256I.6, 225A.4, 256I.9, 237A.13, 256I.7