Data / Federal rules / 2025-23452
COVID-19 Mitigation Policy Requirement in Head Start Programs; Recission
The Children and Families Administration published this final rule in the Federal Register on December 19, 2025. It took effect on February 17, 2026. Comments closed on January 20, 2026.
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What the agency says
This direct final rule (DFR) removes the requirement that Head Start programs have a COVID-19 mitigation policy. This requirement was included in the final rule titled "Mitigating the Spread of COVID-19 in Head Start Programs," which ACF published on January 6, 2023. Specifically, this rescission removes the requirement from the Head Start Program Performance Standards (Performance Standards) that Head Start programs have a COVID-19 mitigation policy developed in consultation with their Health and Mental Health Services Advisory Committee (HMHSAC), formerly the Health Services Advisory Committee (HSAC). This DFR meets the deregulatory requirements of Executive Order 14192, Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation, and is aligned with Executive Order 14148, Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions.
Key facts
- Document number
- 2025-23452
- Type
- Final rule
- Action
- Direct final rule; request for comments
- Agency
- Health and Human Services Department; Children and Families Administration
- Published
- December 19, 2025
- Takes effect
- February 17, 2026
- Comments due
- January 20, 2026
- Dates
- This DFR is effective on February 17, 2026 unless significant adverse comments are received by January 20, 2026. If significant adverse comments are received, notice will be published in the Federal Register before the effective date either withdrawing the rule or issuing a new final rule that responds to significant adverse comments.
- Regulation ID (RIN)
- 0970-AD17
- Code of Federal Regulations
- 45 CFR 1302
- Topics
- Grant programs
- Significant
- Yes, under Executive Order 12866
- Pages
- 4
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|---|---|---|
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| Reforming Federal Reporting and Assessments in Child Welfare 2026-20329 | Proposed rule | Oct 5 |
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| Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System 2026-16414 · significant | Proposed rule | Aug 12 |
| Reducing Federal Burden for Head Start Programs 2026-16134 | Proposed rule | Aug 7 |
| Reducing Bureaucracy and Burden in Family Violence and Prevention Services 2026-15681 | Final rule | Aug 3 |
| Reducing Bureaucracy and Burden for Family Assistance Programs 2026-15567 | Final rule | Jul 31 |
| Administrative Costs for Children in Title IV-E Foster Care 2026-15403 · significant | Proposed rule | Jul 30 |
Everything from the Children and Families Administration · Rules on grant programs · Published in December 2025
Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-24. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.