The Secretary of Defense may provide for the families of members of the armed forces serving on active duty, in addition to any other assistance available for such families, any assistance that the Secretary considers appropriate to ensure that the children of such members obtain needed child care, education, and other youth services.

The assistance authorized by this section should be directed primarily toward providing needed family support, including child care, education, and other youth services, for children of members of the armed forces who are deployed, assigned to duty, or ordered to active duty in connection with a contingency operation.