Fund full-day, full-year head start programming
Fund full-day, full-year Head Start programming.
Occurrences
Evidence
GovInfo shows H.R. 7637 was introduced in the House on February 20, 2026, with Ms. Omar among the cosponsors. The bill amends the Head Start Act to define a full calendar year for center-based Head Start services as a minimum of 1,380 hours, and authorizes $863,000,000 for extended operation grants to enable Head Start agencies to provide center-based services for more than 1,380 hours during a year.
The joint explanatory statement for the FY2026 LHHS appropriations package sets Head Start at $12,274,978,000 and says the agreement strongly supports Early Head Start, prioritizes maintenance of current slots, and encourages HHS to maintain the EHS allocation at least at the current proportion of overall Head Start appropriations.
Assessments
Omar cosponsored H.R. 7637 in the 119th Congress, which directly targeted full-day, full-year Head Start by defining extended service hours and authorizing extended operation grants. However, the evidence says the bill was only introduced and referred to committee, not enacted. FY2026 appropriations maintained Head Start funding but did not deliver the specific promised expansion to full-day, full-year programming. This supports serious effort but not fulfillment.