EDUCATION DEPARTMENT: Provides relative to children and family assistance programs. (8/1/26)

Added a new statute (R.S. 17:407.29.1) that establishes a provisional eligibility process, allowing expectant mothers to apply for Child Care Assistance before the child is born.

Requires the Department of Education to develop a specific process to determine provisional eligibility and later confirm it after the child is born.

Mandates that the provisional eligibility process must be approved by the Senate and House committees on education.

Updated the bill header and sponsor list to reflect the enrolled status and added co-sponsors, while clarifying the title of the act.

Corrected the bill title and sponsor list to match the final enrolled version, removing the list of co-sponsors and adding the official bill number.

Added a digest section explaining the bill's purpose and retained the original effective date of August 1, 2026.

Adjusted line numbers and formatting to align with the standard enrolled bill format.

Added Representatives Boyd, Broussard, Carrier, Freeman, Freiberg, Dana Henry, Lafleur, Terry Landry, Marcelle, Martinez, Miller, Moore, Murray, Taylor, Walters, and Young as co-sponsors to the bill.

Changed the bill status from 'Reengrossed' to 'Enrolled,' indicating it has passed both chambers in identical form and is ready for the Governor's signature.

Corrected a repetitive phrasing error in the eligibility criteria section where 'board State Board' appeared twice.

Changed the page count footer from 'Page 1 of 4' to 'Page 1 of 3' to reflect the final enrolled version.

Clarified that the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, not the Department of Education, is the entity authorized to promulgate rules and regulations.

Updated the committee approval requirement to allow Senate and House education committees to meet separately or jointly, rather than requiring them to meet jointly.

Updated the list of programs covered by the Advisory Council to explicitly include the Child Care Assistance Program, Early Head Start, and Head Start.