H.R. 9553: Child Care Small Business Insight and Improvement Act of 2026

This bill would require the Small Business Administration (SBA) to prepare a report for Congress within 120 days after the bill becomes law. The report would focus on for-profit child care providers, meaning child care businesses that operate for profit in any state, territory, possession, or the District of Columbia.

What the report would cover

• Challenges and needs: It would assess the main difficulties these child care businesses face and what they need to operate.
• Current SBA support: It would describe what resources or assistance the SBA already provides to these providers.
• Gaps in support: It would identify any shortcomings in the SBA’s current help or programs.
• Possible legislative fixes: It would recommend any changes in law that might help address the problems identified.
• Leadership needs: It would identify what leadership or administrative roles would be needed to carry out those recommendations.
• Fraud and misuse of federal funds: It would include the number of fraud cases involving for-profit child care providers and suggest legal changes to help prevent misuse of federal money.

What the bill does not do

• It does not create a new child care program.
• It does not directly provide new funding.
• It does not change child care rules by itself.

The bill also states that no additional appropriations are authorized to carry it out, meaning it is intended to be done without creating new funding authority.

Relevant Companies

• BFAM - Bright Horizons Family Solutions, a large operator of child care and education centers that could be affected by any future policy changes affecting for-profit child care providers.
• KLC - KinderCare Learning Companies, another major for-profit child care provider that could be directly affected by findings or recommendations from the SBA report.