Protecting Childcare from Private Equity Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9875 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9875

     To require the Securities and Exchange Commission to collect
 information on certain private fund ownership of child care centers,
                        and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 22, 2026

   Mr. Riley of New York (for himself, Mr. Casar, Mr. Cisneros, Mrs.
   McClain Delaney, Mr. Subramanyam, and Mr. Vindman) introduced the
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial
Services, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Workforce,
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
                        the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

     To require the Securities and Exchange Commission to collect
 information on certain private fund ownership of child care centers,
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Childcare from Private
Equity Act''.

SEC. 2. COLLECTION OF INFORMATION ON CERTAIN PRIVATE FUND OWNERSHIP OF
              LEGAL ENTITIES THAT PROVIDE CHILDCARE.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Securities and Exchange Commission, in consultation
with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall require each
covered private fund to provide the Commission with information on the
ownership, purchase, and sale by such fund of legal entities that
provide childcare.
    (b) Report to Congress.--Not later than 1 month after the end of
each fiscal year, the Commission shall issue a report to Congress
containing anonymized data collected under subsection (a) for the
previous fiscal year.

SEC. 3. LIMITATIONS WITH RESPECT TO NEWLY ACQUIRED LEGAL ENTITIES THAT
              PROVIDE CHILDCARE.

    (a) In General.--During the 4-year period beginning on the date
that a covered private fund first controls a legal entity that provides
childcare--
            (1) the covered private fund may not sell any interest in
        the legal entity; and
            (2) the legal entity may not make any dividend payment or
        capital distribution to, or undertake a share buyback from, the
        covered private fund.

SEC. 4. STUDY ON PRIVATE EQUITY OWNERSHIP OF CHILDCARE PROVIDERS.

    (a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall, in
consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the
Securities and Exchange Commission, carry out a study on the effect of
private equity ownership of childcare providers in terms of quality of
care, availability of spots, tuition, employee wages, and such other
items as the Comptroller General determines appropriate.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Comptroller General shall issue a report to the Congress
containing all findings and determinations made in carrying out the
applicable study required under subsection (a).

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Controls.--With respect to a legal entity, a person
        ``controls'' the legal entity if the person owns, or otherwise
        has the power to vote, more than 50 percent of the equity
        voting securities of the legal entity.
            (2) Covered private fund.--The term ``covered private
        fund'' means an issuer--
                    (A) that would be an investment company, as defined
                in the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-1
                et seq.), but for paragraph (1) or (7) of section 3(c)
                of that Act;
                    (B) with more than $150,000,000 in assets under
                management; and
                    (C) that, through legal entities controlled by the
                issuer, provides childcare at more than 25 locations.
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