TITLE 10 - US CODE - CHAPTER 88 - MILITARY FAMILY PROGRAMS AND MILITARY CHILD CARE

TITLE 10 - US CODE - SUBCHAPTER I - MILITARY FAMILY PROGRAMS

10 USC 1781 - Office of Family Policy

(a) Establishment.—
There is in the Office of the Secretary of Defense an Office of Family Policy (hereinafter in this section referred to as the Office). The Office shall be under the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management and Personnel.

(b) Duties.—
The Office

(1) shall coordinate programs and activities of the military departments to the extent that they relate to military families; and

(2) shall make recommendations to the Secretaries of the military departments with respect to programs and policies regarding military families.

10 USC 1781a - Department of Defense Military Family Readiness Council

(a) In General.—
There is in the Department of Defense the Department of Defense Military Family Readiness Council (in this section referred to as the Council).

(b) Members.—

(1) The Council shall consist of the following members:

(A) The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, who shall serve as chair of the Council.

(B) One representative of each of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, who shall be appointed by the Secretary of Defense.

(C) Three individuals appointed by the Secretary of Defense from among representatives of military family organizations, including military family organizations of families of members of the regular components and of families of members of the reserve components.

(D) In addition to the representatives appointed under subparagraph (B), the senior enlisted advisors of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, or the spouse of a senior enlisted member from each of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force.

(2) The term on the Council of the members appointed under paragraph (1)(C) shall be three years.

(d) Duties.—
The duties of the Council shall include the following:

(1) To review and make recommendations to the Secretary of Defense regarding the policy and plans required under section 1781b of this title.

(2) To monitor requirements for the support of military family readiness by the Department of Defense.

(3) To evaluate and assess the effectiveness of the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense.

(e) Annual Reports.—

(1) Not later than February 1 each year, the Council shall submit to the Secretary of Defense and the congressional defense committees a report on military family readiness.

(2) Each report under this subsection shall include the following:

(A) An assessment of the adequacy and effectiveness of the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense during the preceding fiscal year in meeting the needs and requirements of military families.

(B) Recommendations on actions to be taken to improve the capability of the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense to meet the needs and requirements of military families, including actions relating to the allocation of funding and other resources to and among such programs and activities.

10 USC 1781b - Department of Defense policy and plans for military family readiness

(a) Policy and Plans Required.—
The Secretary of Defense shall develop a policy and plans for the Department of Defense for the support of military family readiness.

(b) Purposes.—
The purposes of the policy and plans required under subsection (a) are as follows:

(1) To ensure that the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense are comprehensive, effective, and properly supported.

(2) To ensure that support is continuously available to military families in peacetime and in war, as well as during periods of force structure change and relocation of military units.

(3) To ensure that the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense are available to all military families, including military families of members of the regular components and military families of members of the reserve components.

(4) To make military family readiness an explicit element of applicable Department of Defense plans, programs, and budgeting activities, and that achievement of military family readiness is expressed through Department-wide goals that are identifiable and measurable.

(5) To ensure that the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense undergo continuous evaluation in order to ensure that resources are allocated and expended for such programs and activities to achieve Department-wide family readiness goals.

(1) A list of military family readiness programs and activities.

(2) Department of Defense-wide goals for military family support, including joint programs, both for military families of members of the regular components and military families of members of the reserve components.

(3) Policies on access to military family support programs and activities based on military family populations served and geographical location.

(4) Metrics to measure the performance and effectiveness of the military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense.

(5) A summary, by fiscal year, of the allocation of funds (including appropriated funds and nonappropriated funds) for major categories of military family readiness programs and activities of the Department of Defense, set forth for each of the military departments and for the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

(d) Annual Report.—
Not later than March 1, 2008, and each year thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense committees a report on the plans required under subsection (a) for the five-fiscal year period beginning with the fiscal year in which the report is submitted. Each report shall include the plans covered by the report and an assessment of the discharge by the Department of Defense of the previous plans submitted under this section.

10 USC 1782 - Surveys of military families

(a) Authority.—
The Secretary of Defense, in order to determine the effectiveness of Federal programs relating to military families and the need for new programs, may conduct surveys of

(1) members of the armed forces who are on active duty, in an active status, or retired;

(2) family members of such members; and

(3) survivors of deceased retired members and of members who died while on active duty.

(b) Responses To Be Voluntary.—
Responses to surveys conducted under this section shall be voluntary.

(c) Federal Recordkeeping Requirements.—
With respect to a survey authorized under subsection (a) that includes a person referred to in that subsection who is not an employee of the United States or is not otherwise considered an employee of the United States for the purposes of section 3502 (3)(A)(i) of title 44, the person shall be considered as being an employee of the United States for the purposes of that section.

(d) Survey Required for Fiscal Year 2010.—
Notwithstanding subsection (a), during fiscal year 2010, the Secretary of Defense shall conduct a survey otherwise authorized under such subsection. Thereafter, additional surveys may be conducted not less often than once every three fiscal years.

10 USC 1783 - Family members serving on advisory committees

A committee within the Department of Defense which advises or assists the Department in the performance of any function which affects members of military families and which includes members of military families in its membership shall not be considered an advisory committee under section 3(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) solely because of such membership.

10 USC 1784 - Employment opportunities for military spouses

(a) Authority.—
The President shall order such measures as the President considers necessary to increase employment opportunities for spouses of members of the armed forces. Such measures may include

(1) excepting, pursuant to section 3302 of title 5, from the competitive service positions in the Department of Defense located outside of the United States to provide employment opportunities for qualified spouses of members of the armed forces in the same geographical area as the permanent duty station of the members; and

(2) providing preference in hiring for positions in nonappropriated fund activities to qualified spouses of members of the armed forces stationed in the same geographical area as the nonappropriated fund activity for positions in wage grade UA8 and below and equivalent positions and for positions paid at hourly rates.

(b) Regulations.—
The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations

(1) to implement such measures as the President orders under subsection (a);

(2) to provide preference to qualified spouses of members of the armed forces in hiring for any civilian position in the Department of Defense if the spouse is among persons determined to be best qualified for the position and if the position is located in the same geographical area as the permanent duty station of the member;

(3) to ensure that notice of any vacant position in the Department of Defense is provided in a manner reasonably designed to reach spouses of members of the armed forces whose permanent duty stations are in the same geographic area as the area in which the position is located; and

(4) to ensure that the spouse of a member of the armed forces who applies for a vacant position in the Department of Defense shall, to the extent practicable, be considered for any such position located in the same geographic area as the permanent duty station of the member.

(c) Status of Preference Eligibles.—
Nothing in this section shall be construed to provide a spouse of a member of the armed forces with preference in hiring over an individual who is a preference eligible.

(d) Space-Available Use of Facilities for Spouse Training Purposes.—
Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of a military department may make available to a non-Department of Defense entity space in non-excess facilities controlled by that Secretary for the purpose of the non-Department of Defense entity providing employment-related training for military spouses.

(e) Employment by Other Federal Agencies.—
The Secretary of Defense shall work with the Director of the Office of Personnel Management and the heads of other Federal departments and agencies to expand and facilitate the use of existing Federal programs and resources in support of military spouse employment.

(f) Private-Sector Employment.—
The Secretary of Defense

(1) shall seek to develop partnerships with firms in the private sector to enhance employment opportunities for spouses of members of the armed forces and to provide for improved job portability for such spouses, especially in the case of the spouse of a member of the armed forces accompanying the member to a new geographical area because of a change of permanent duty station of the member; and

(2) shall work with the United States Chamber of Commerce and other appropriate private-sector entities to facilitate the formation of such partnerships.

(g) Employment With DOD Contractors.—
The Secretary of Defense shall examine and seek ways for incorporating hiring preferences for qualified spouses of members of the armed forces into contracts between the Department of Defense and private-sector entities.

10 USC 1784a - Education and training opportunities for military spouses to expand employment and portable career opportunities

(a) Programs and Tuition Assistance.—

(1) The Secretary of Defense may establish programs to assist the spouse of a member of the armed forces described in subsection (b) in achieving

(A) the education and training required for a degree or credential at an accredited college, university, or technical school in the United States that expands employment and portable career opportunities for the spouse; or

(B) the education prerequisites and professional licensure or credential required, by a government or government sanctioned licensing body, for an occupation that expands employment and portable career opportunities for the spouse.

(2) As an alternative to, or in addition to, establishing a program under this subsection, the Secretary may provide tuition assistance to an eligible spouse who is pursuing education, training, or a license or credential to expand the spouses employment and portable career opportunities.

(b) Eligible Spouses.—
Assistance under this section is limited to a spouse of a member of the armed forces who is serving on active duty.

(1) a person who is married to, but legally separated from, a member of the armed forces under court order or statute of any State or territorial possession of the United States; and

(2) a spouse of a member of the armed forces who is also a member of the armed forces.

(d) Portable Career Opportunities Defined.—
In this section, the term portable career includes an occupation identified by the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of Labor, as requiring education and training that results in a credential that is recognized nationwide by industry or specific businesses.

(e) Regulations.—
The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations to govern the availability and use of assistance under this section. The Secretary shall ensure that programs established under this section do not result in inequitable treatment for spouses of members of the armed forces who are also members, since they are excluded from participation in the programs under subsection (c)(2).

10 USC 1785 - Youth sponsorship program

(a) Requirement.—
The Secretary of Defense shall require that there be at each military installation a youth sponsorship program to facilitate the integration of dependent children of members of the armed forces into new surroundings when moving to that military installation as a result of a parents permanent change of station.

(b) Description of Programs.—
The program at each installation shall provide for involvement of dependent children of members presently stationed at the military installation and shall be directed primarily toward children in their preteen and teenage years.

10 USC 1786 - Dependent student travel within the United States

Funds available to the Department of Defense for the travel and transportation of dependent students of members of the armed forces stationed overseas may be obligated for transportation allowances for travel within or between the contiguous States.

10 USC 1787 - Reporting of child abuse

(a) In General.—
The Secretary of Defense shall request each State to provide for the reporting to the Secretary of any report the State receives of known or suspected instances of child abuse and neglect in which the person having care of the child is a member of the armed forces (or the spouse of the member).

(b) Definition.—
In this section, the term child abuse and neglect has the meaning provided in section 3(1) of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5102).^[1]

[1] See References in Text note below.

10 USC 1788 - Additional family assistance

(a) Authority.—
The Secretary of Defense may provide for the families of members of the armed forces serving on active duty, in addition to any other assistance available for such families, any assistance that the Secretary considers appropriate to ensure that the children of such members obtain needed child care, education, and other youth services.

(b) Primary Purpose of Assistance.—
The assistance authorized by this section should be directed primarily toward providing needed family support, including child care, education, and other youth services, for children of members of the Armed Forces who are deployed, assigned to duty, or ordered to active duty in connection with a contingency operation.

10 USC 1789 - Chaplain-led programs: authorized support

(a) Authority.—
The Secretary of a military department may provide support services described in subsection (b) to support chaplain-led programs to assist members of the armed forces on active duty and their immediate family members, and members of reserve components in an active status and their immediate family members, in building and maintaining a strong family structure.

(b) Authorized Support Services.—
The support services referred to in subsection (a) are costs of transportation, food, lodging, child care, supplies, fees, and training materials for members of the armed forces and their family members while participating in programs referred to in that subsection, including participation at retreats and conferences.

(c) Immediate Family Members.—
In this section, the term immediate family members, with respect to a member of the armed forces, means

(1) the members spouse; and

(2) any child (as defined in section 1072 (6) of this title) of the member who is described in subparagraph (D) of section 1072 (2) of this title.

TITLE 10 - US CODE - SUBCHAPTER II - MILITARY CHILD CARE

10 USC 1791 - Funding for military child care

It is the policy of Congress that the amount of appropriated funds available during a fiscal year for operating expenses for military child development centers and programs shall be not less than the amount of child care fee receipts that are estimated to be received by the Department of Defense during that fiscal year.

10 USC 1792 - Child care employees

(a) Required Training.—

(1) The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations implementing a training program for child care employees. Those regulations shall apply uniformly among the military departments. Subject to paragraph (2), satisfactory completion of the training program shall be a condition of employment of any person as a child care employee.

(2) Under those regulations, the Secretary shall require that each child care employee complete the training program not later than six months after the date on which the employee is employed as a child care employee.

(3) The training program established under this subsection shall cover, at a minimum, training in the following:

(A) Early childhood development.

(B) Activities and disciplinary techniques appropriate to children of different ages.

(D) Cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other emergency medical procedures.

(b) Training and Curriculum Specialists.—

(1) The Secretary of Defense shall require that at least one employee at each military child development center be a specialist in training and curriculum development. The Secretary shall ensure that such employees have appropriate credentials and experience.

(2) The duties of such employees shall include the following:

(A) Special teaching activities at the center.

(B) Daily oversight and instruction of other child care employees at the center.

(D) Assistance in the centers child abuse prevention and detection program.

(E) Advising the director of the center on the performance of other child care employees.

(3) Each employee referred to in paragraph (1) shall be an employee in a competitive service position.

(c) Competitive Rates of Pay.—
For the purpose of providing military child development centers with a qualified and stable civilian workforce, employees at a military installation who are directly involved in providing child care and are paid from nonappropriated funds

(1) in the case of entry-level employees, shall be paid at rates of pay competitive with the rates of pay paid to other entry-level employees at that installation who are drawn from the same labor pool; and

(2) in the case of other employees, shall be paid at rates of pay substantially equivalent to the rates of pay paid to other employees at that installation with similar training, seniority, and experience.

(d) Competitive Service Position Defined.—
In this section, the term competitive service position means a position in the competitive service, as defined in section 2102 (a)(1) of title 5.

10 USC 1793 - Parent fees

(a) In General.—
The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations establishing fees to be charged parents for the attendance of children at military child development centers. Those regulations shall be uniform for the military departments and shall require that, in the case of children who attend the centers on a regular basis, the fees shall be based on family income.

(b) Local Waiver Authority.—
The Secretary of Defense may provide authority to installation commanders, on a case-by-case basis, to establish fees for attendance of children at child development centers at rates lower than those prescribed under subsection (a) if the rates prescribed under subsection (a) are not competitive with rates at local non-military child development centers.

10 USC 1794 - Child abuse prevention and safety at facilities

(a) Child Abuse Task Force.—
The Secretary of Defense shall maintain a special task force to respond to allegations of widespread child abuse at a military installation. The task force shall be composed of personnel from appropriate disciplines, including, where appropriate, medicine, psychology, and childhood development. In the case of such allegations, the task force shall provide assistance to the commander of the installation, and to parents at the installation, in helping them to deal with such allegations.

(b) National Hotline.—

(1) The Secretary of Defense shall maintain a national telephone number for persons to use to report suspected child abuse or safety violations at a military child development center or family home day care site. The Secretary shall ensure that such reports may be made anonymously if so desired by the person making the report. The Secretary shall establish procedures for following up on complaints and information received over that number.

(2) The Secretary shall publicize the existence of the number.

(c) Assistance From Local Authorities.—
The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations requiring that, in a case of allegations of child abuse at a military child development center or family home day care site, the commander of the military installation or the head of the task force established under subsection (a) shall seek the assistance of local child protective authorities if such assistance is available.

(d) Safety Regulations.—
The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations on safety and operating procedures at military child development centers. Those regulations shall apply uniformly among the military departments.

(e) Inspections.—
The Secretary of Defense shall require that each military child development center be inspected not less often than four times a year. Each such inspection shall be unannounced. At least one inspection a year shall be carried out by a representative of the installation served by the center, and one inspection a year shall be carried out by a representative of the major command under which that installation operates.

(f) Remedies for Violations.—

(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any violation of a safety, health, or child welfare law or regulation (discovered at an inspection or otherwise) at a military child development center shall be remedied immediately.

(2) In the case of a violation that is not life threatening, the commander of the major command under which the installation concerned operates may waive the requirement that the violation be remedied immediately for a period of up to 90 days beginning on the date of the discovery of the violation. If the violation is not remedied as of the end of that 90-day period, the military child development center shall be closed until the violation is remedied. The Secretary of the military department concerned may waive the preceding sentence and authorize the center to remain open in a case in which the violation cannot reasonably be remedied within that 90-day period or in which major facility reconstruction is required.

10 USC 1795 - Parent partnerships with child development centers

(a) Parent Boards.—
The Secretary of Defense shall require that there be established at each military child development center a board of parents, to be composed of parents of children attending the center. The board shall meet periodically with staff of the center and the commander of the installation served by the center for the purpose of discussing problems and concerns. The board, together with the staff of the center, shall be responsible for coordinating the parent participation program described in subsection (b).

(b) Parent Participation Programs.—
The Secretary of Defense shall require the establishment of a parent participation program at each military child development center. As part of such program, the Secretary of Defense may establish fees for attendance of children at such a center, in the case of parents who participate in the parent participation program at that center, at rates lower than the rates that otherwise apply.

10 USC 1796 - Subsidies for family home day care

The Secretary of Defense may use appropriated funds available for military child care purposes to provide assistance to family home day care providers so that family home day care services can be provided to members of the armed forces at a cost comparable to the cost of services provided by military child development centers. The Secretary shall prescribe regulations for the provision of such assistance.

10 USC 1797 - Early childhood education program

The Secretary of Defense shall require that all military child development centers meet standards of operation necessary for accreditation by an appropriate national early childhood programs accrediting body.

10 USC 1798 - Child care services and youth program services for dependents: financial assistance for providers

(a) Authority.—
The Secretary of Defense may provide financial assistance to an eligible civilian provider of child care services or youth program services that furnishes such services for members of the armed forces and employees of the United States if the Secretary determines that providing such financial assistance

(1) is in the best interest of the Department of Defense;

(2) enables supplementation or expansion of furnishing of child care services or youth program services for military installations, while not supplanting or replacing such services; and

(3) ensures that the eligible provider is able to comply, and does comply, with the regulations, policies, and standards of the Department of Defense that are applicable to the furnishing of such services.

(b) Eligible Providers.—
A provider of child care services or youth program services is eligible for financial assistance under this section if the provider

(1) is licensed to provide those services under applicable State and local law;

(2) has previously provided such services for members of the armed forces or employees of the United States; and

(3) either

(A) is a family home day care provider; or

(B) is a provider of family child care services that

(i) otherwise provides federally funded or sponsored child development services;

(ii) provides the services in a child development center owned and operated by a private, not-for-profit organization;

(iii) provides before-school or after-school child care program in a school">public school facility;

(iv) conducts an otherwise federally funded or federally sponsored school age child care or youth services program;

(v) conducts a school age child care or youth services program that is owned and operated by a not-for-profit organization; or

(vi) is a provider of another category of child care services or youth services determined by the Secretary of Defense as appropriate for meeting the needs of members of the armed forces or employees of the Department of Defense.

(c) Funding.—
To provide financial assistance under this subsection, the Secretary of Defense may use any funds appropriated to the Department of Defense for operation and maintenance.

10 USC 1799 - Child care services and youth program services for dependents: participation by children and youth otherwise ineligible

(a) Authority.—
The Secretary of Defense may authorize participation in child care or youth programs of the Department of Defense, to the extent of the availability of space and services, by children and youth under the age of 19 who are not dependents of members of the armed forces or of employees of the Department of Defense and are not otherwise eligible for participation in those programs.

(b) Limitation.—
Authorization of participation in a program under subsection (a) shall be limited to situations in which that participation promotes the attainment of the objectives set forth in subsection (c), as determined by the Secretary.

(1) To support the integration of children and youth of military families into civilian communities.

(2) To make more efficient use of Department of Defense facilities and resources.

(3) To establish or support a partnership or consortium arrangement with schools and other youth services organizations serving children of members of the armed forces.

10 USC 1800 - Definitions

In this subchapter:

(1) The term military child development center means a facility on a military installation (or on property under the jurisdiction of the commander of a military installation) at which child care services are provided for members of the armed forces or any other facility at which such child care services are provided that is operated by the Secretary of a military department.

(2) The term family home day care means home-based child care services that are provided for members of the armed forces by an individual who

(A) is certified by the Secretary of the military department concerned as qualified to provide those services, and

(B) provides those services on a regular basis for compensation.

(3) The term child care employee means a civilian employee of the Department of Defense who is employed to work in a military child development center (regardless of whether the employee is paid from appropriated funds or nonappropriated funds).

(4) The term child care fee receipts means those nonappropriated funds that are derived from fees paid by members of the armed forces for child care services provided at military child development centers.