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A proposed rule issued last week seeks to roll back Head Start wage and benefit requirements approved during the Biden administration, according to a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services notice in the Federal Register.
The 2024 final rule required Head Start providers to set teacher wages that correlate with public preschool teacher salaries — which would average to about $10,000 more than they make now per year. That requirement has a long runway: It is set to go into effect in August 2031.
Another part of the 2024 rule mandates that Head Start programs provide full-time staff with health care coverage, paid leave, and behavioral health services by August 2028.
In its May 12 notice of proposed rulemaking, HHS’ Administration for Children and Families, which oversees Head Start, called the wage and benefit requirements “costly and overly prescriptive.”
ACF, under the Trump administration, “has determined that the wage and benefit requirements exceed the Head Start Act’s statutory requirements by restricting program flexibility and imposing a federal minimum wage that would likely exceed the Fair Labor Standards Act level,” the proposed rule said.
By full implementation in 2031, the 2024 rule is estimated to cost about $1.2 billion for the wage standards and $877 million for the benefits standards. Those expenses would lead to eliminating some 106,000 Head Start slots for children, according to the proposed rule.
ACF, in the proposed rule, called the rollback “in the best interest of Head Start programs, children, and families” to ensure that Head Start services can continue “for as many children and families as possible.”
While HHS had considered trying to rescind the 2024 rule altogether, it ultimately decided to only seek pulling back the wage and benefit requirements. Other components in the 2024 rule that would stand include requirements for staff breaks, enhanced mental health supports for children, and various operational and educational practices.
Public input on the proposed rule will be collected through June 11. A final rule would take effect 60 days after being published in the Federal Register.
‘Meaningful’ investments
Head Start, which celebrated its 60th anniversary last year, serves nearly 800,000 infants, toddlers and preschool children a year. Those eligible for Head Start include families living below the poverty line or experiencing homelessness, and children in foster care.
More than 17,000 Head Start centers operate nationwide with 250,000 staff, according to the National Head Start Association, a nonprofit that represents Head Start families, providers and educators.
In fiscal year 2026, Congress funded Head Start at $12.4 billion.
Shortly after the 2024 rule was issued, NHSA said that while it was pleased with the overall regulation, it worried that without additional federal funding to cover the new requirements, the number of children and families served by Head Start would need to be reduced.
In response to last week’s proposed rule, NHSA said the program faces staffing shortages, and low wages hurt recruitment and retention. At the same time, Head Start programs are facing increasing costs for food, transportation and facilities, the organization said in its May 11 statement.
NHSA called on Congress and the Trump administration to make “meaningful” investments in Head Start.
“Simply repealing the workforce compensation provisions of the 2024 final rule, which are not scheduled to take effect until 2028 or 2031, will not change these underlying fiscal pressures,” NHSA said.
