H.R. 8453 — Rural Child Care Facility Expansion Act

This section establishes a low-interest loan program, administered by the Secretary of Agriculture beginning one year after enactment, to enable covered child care providers to renovate, retrofit, expand, or adapt structures to increase child care availability in child care deserts (i.e., census tracts where children outnumber licensed slots by at least 3:1 or no providers exist) located in rural communities (i.e., census-designated places with populations under 20,000). Covered child care providers include licensed providers of child care for children from birth to school age (including after-school, pre-K, or pre-school programs) that conduct required criminal background checks, plus others deemed qualified by the Secretary. Loans bear interest at Treasury constant maturity rates plus 1/8 of 1%, have terms up to 25 years with Secretary-determined repayment schedules, and limit pre-development uses (e.g., planning, design) to 10% of proceeds. The Secretary must notify applicants of completeness within 30 days and approval or denial within 90 days based on provider status and project benefits; annual reports to Congress must detail loans awarded, slots created or preserved (including for low-income or dual-language learner children), staff employed, demographics, and pre-K providers funded.