1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to early childhood education; appropriating money for grants to provide 
1.3 	early learning opportunities, educational supports, and services to children.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. APPROPRIATION; SUMMER PRESCHOOL FOR CHILDREN WHO 
1.6 	ARE FOUR AND FIVE YEARS OF AGE.
 1.7 	(a) $20,000,000 in fiscal year 2021 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
1.8 	commissioner of education for grants to provide high-quality early learning opportunities 
1.9 	to children who are four and five years of age by providing grant money to be used in a 
1.10 	three- or four-star-rated private preschool, a public preschool, or a public prekindergarten 
1.11 	in-person learning program.
1.12 	(b) Grant money of up to $4,800 per enrolled and attending student must be allocated 
1.13 	to children who need additional support, were four or five years of age on September 1, 
1.14 	2020, and have not yet attended kindergarten. Grant money must be used for applicable 
1.15 	program costs limited to tuition, transportation, food service, and interpreter or multilingual 
1.16 	student support costs.
1.17 	(c) Prioritization for program participation must take into consideration children who 
1.18 	qualify for free and reduced-price lunch and meet at least one of the following eligibility 
1.19 	categories, with the highest priority to children qualifying under multiple categories:
1.20 	(1) children in foster care, involved in the child protection system, experiencing 
1.21 	homelessness, tribally enrolled, or children of teenage parents; or
1.22 	(2) children who need or are currently receiving educational supports and services.
2.1 	(d) In order to qualify for a grant, a summer preschool program must:
2.2 	(1) offer a minimum of six instructional hours per day, for five days per week, for 
2.3 	between ten and 12 weeks;
2.4 	(2) continue to meet school year standards of school readiness, voluntary prekindergarten, 
2.5 	school readiness plus, Head Start, or three- or four-star Parent Aware rated programs; and
2.6 	(3) allow families to participate in a sliding fee scale for services if space permits.
2.7 	(e) Programs that qualify under paragraph (d) may apply for grant funding to the 
2.8 	commissioner in the form and manner prescribed by the commissioner. The application 
2.9 	must indicate the number of students that the program has the capacity to serve. The 
2.10 	commissioner must equitably distribute grant money across school-based, Head Start, and 
2.11 	community preschool and child care programs.
2.12 	(f) A program that receives grant money must report student information following the 
2.13 	criteria required under the applicable program type as determined by the commissioner.
2.14 	(g) Up to 0.5 percent of this appropriation is available for grant administration.
2.15 	(h) This is a onetime appropriation and is available until June 30, 2022.

2.16 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.