---
kind: "section"
citation: "42 U.S.C. § 9859c"
title: "42"
title_heading: "The Public Health and Welfare"
number: "9859c"
heading: "Amounts reserved; allotments"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/42/9859c"
units:
  - "Chapter 105 — Community Services Programs"
  - "Subchapter II–C — Child Care Safety and Health Grants"
---

# §9859c. Amounts reserved; allotments

- (a) **Amounts reserved—** The [Secretary](/usc/42/9832.md?p=24) shall reserve not more than one-half of 1 percent of the amount appropriated under [section 9859a of this title](/usc/42/9859a.md) for each fiscal year to make allotments to Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands to be allotted in accordance with their respective needs.
- (b) **State allotments—**
  - (1) **General rule—** From the amounts appropriated under [section 9859a of this title](/usc/42/9859a.md) for each fiscal year and remaining after reservations are made under [subsection (a)](#a), the [Secretary](/usc/42/9832.md?p=24) shall allot to each [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) an amount equal to the sum of—
    - (A) an amount that bears the same ratio to 50 percent of such remainder as the product of the young child factor of the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) and the allotment percentage of the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) bears to the sum of the corresponding products for all [States](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25); and
    - (B) an amount that bears the same ratio to 50 percent of such remainder as the product of the school lunch factor of the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) and the allotment percentage of the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) bears to the sum of the corresponding products for all [States](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25).
  - (2) **Young child factor—** In this subsection, the term “young child factor” means the ratio of the number of children under 5 years of age in a [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) to the number of such children in all [States](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25), as provided by the most recent annual estimates of population in the [States](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) by the Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce.
  - (3) **School lunch factor—** In this subsection, the term “school lunch factor” means the ratio of the number of children who are receiving free or reduced price lunches under the school lunch program established under the National School Lunch Act ([42 U.S.C. 1751](/usc/42/1751.md) et seq.) in the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) to the number of such children in all [States](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25), as determined annually by the Department of Agriculture.
  - (4) **Allotment percentage—**
    - (A) **In general—** For purposes of this subsection, the allotment percentage for a [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) shall be determined by dividing the per capita income of all individuals in the United States, by the per capita income of all individuals in the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25).
    - (B) **Limitations—** If an allotment percentage determined under [subparagraph (A)](#b-4-A) for a [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25)—
      - (i) is more than 1.2 percent, the allotment percentage of the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) shall be considered to be 1.2 percent; and
      - (ii) is less than 0.8 percent, the allotment percentage of the [State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) shall be considered to be 0.8 percent.
    - (C) **Per capita income—** For purposes of [subparagraph (A)](#b-4-A), per capita income shall be—
      - (i) determined at 2-year intervals;
      - (ii) applied for the 2-year period beginning on October 1 of the first fiscal year beginning after the date such determination is made; and
      - (iii) equal to the average of the annual per capita incomes for the most recent period of 3 consecutive years for which satisfactory data are available from the Department of Commerce on the date such determination is made.
- (c) **Data and information—** The [Secretary](/usc/42/9832.md?p=24) shall obtain from each appropriate Federal [agency](/usc/42/8262.md?p=1), the most recent data and information necessary to determine the allotments provided for in [subsection (b)](#b).
- (d) **Definition—** In this section, the term “[State](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25)” includes only the several [States](/usc/42/9832.md?p=25) of the United States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 106–310, div. A, title XIV, § 1404, Oct. 17, 2000, 114 Stat. 1143.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### References in Text

The National School Lunch Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(3), probably means the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, act June 4, 1946, ch. 281, 60 Stat. 230, which is classified generally to chapter 13 (§ 1751 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1751 of this title and Tables.