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HR 555 112th Congress House

Universal Prekindergarten Act

Official title: To assist States in establishing a universal prekindergarten program to ensure that all children 3, 4, and 5 years old have access to a high-quality full-day, … Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To assist States in establishing a universal prekindergarten program to ensure that all children 3, 4, and 5 years old have access to a high-quality full-day, full-calendar-year prekindergarten education.

Introduced: February 29, 2012 See on congress.gov
Education Education of the disadvantagedEducation programs fundingHigher educationPreschool education
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Student aid and college costsTeaching, teachers, curriculaWages and earnings
This bill died when the 112th Congress ended
It never became law before the 112th Congress (2011–2012) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Mar 4, 2011
Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
Feb 8, 2011
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Feb 8, 2011
Introduced in House
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 Latest action March 4, 2011

Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Universal Prekindergarten Act - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide grants to a designated state agency for development of universal prekindergaten programs for all children three, four, and five years old in the state.

Requires the state to: (1) match federal funds by at least 20%; and (2) submit with its grant application a plan to establish, coordinate, and implement a statewide universal prekindergarten program.

Authorizes state agencies to set aside up to 5% of a grant for ongoing professional development activities for teachers and staff of prekindergarten programs that wish to participate.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 555: Universal Prekindergarten Act. 112th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/112-HR-555/
MLA
"H.R. 555: Universal Prekindergarten Act." 112th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/112-HR-555/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 555, 112th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/112-HR-555/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 555: Universal Prekindergarten Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/112-HR-555/)
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