A new federal proposal could reshape Head Start nationwide. Montgomery County leaders are pushing back before any final decision is made.
The proposed rule would replace the Head Start Program Performance Standards, easing several current requirements.
Nothing has changed yet. The rule is still in a public comment period that runs through Oct. 6, 2026.
What the rule would change
Five changes stand out for Montgomery County families:
Instruction could shift to English-only, replacing current bilingual support requirements for children who don’t yet speak English.
Classrooms could change. The rule would remove federal limits on how many children one staff member can supervise, leaving that decision to each state instead.
Instructional hours could shrink as low as three hours a day for center-based preschool.
Parent involvement requirements could loosen, too. Parent committees, currently required at every center, would become optional.
The rule would also cut the cap on administrative funding from 15% to 5%. That money currently funds staff training and mental health support.
Nearly two-thirds of local Head Start kids could be affected
Head Start serves about 1,000 children in Montgomery County each year, through MCPS and community-based programs. About 63% come from multilingual households. That means nearly two-thirds of local kids could be directly affected if the English-only provision takes effect. All infants, toddlers and preschoolers served come from families facing economic hardship, according to the county.
The county’s response
County Executive Marc Elrich, Council President Natali Fani-González and Community Action Board Chair DaVida Rowley are formally opposing the proposed rule. They’re submitting comments through the federal government’s official process.
Elrich said in a statement that the proposed changes “don’t cut red tape, they cut into what makes the program work.”
Fani-González called the English-only provision “a direct attack on multilingual programs” in a statement. She said local leaders and providers are concerned the changes will reduce access to high-quality programs and create operational challenges for Head Start providers.
MCM asked Elrich at Wednesday’s media briefing whether the county would use its own funding to preserve current staffing levels and instructional hours if federal requirements change. Elrich said the county would need to weigh the tradeoffs first.
“I think we’d have to think about it,” Elrich told MCM. “The repercussions, how many kids might lose it, what it might mean for people who are going to wind up unemployed with nowhere to take care of kids, we’ve got to think about that.”
How to weigh in
Residents can submit their own public comment on the proposed rule now through Oct. 6. Comments can be submitted online through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at regulations.gov, referencing docket number ACF-2026-0595, or by email to Deregulation@acf.hhs.gov with the docket number in the subject line.
Submitted comments become part of the public record and are posted publicly, including the commenter’s identity.
