The audio version of this story is AI generated and is not human reviewed. It may contain errors or inaccuracies. Mississippi needs to invest in its youngest residents and improve access to child care, nearly 100 advocates, community leaders, early childhood educators and lawmakers said Thursday at the Capitol. A 10-month crisis has shown the fragility of support structures for families and providers. Last year, 170 child care centers closed statewide – the highest number in nearly a decade. Pandemic-era funds that helped cover child care costs expired in April.   That rupture in care has landed over 20,000 families on a waitlist for child care vouchers – coupons that make care more affordable for low-income working people. Speakers Thursday demanded solutions from the Legislature and the Department of Human Services, the agency overseeing the child care voucher program.  “Child care providers and teachers are the backbone of the rest of the workforce,” said Jennifer Calvert, whose Aberdeen center lost about 70 children as a result of the voucher situation. “We show up early, stay late and pour our hearts into helping children learn, grow and feel safe. But we can’t do this work alone, and families can’t shoulder these costs by themselves.” At the Capitol, speakers also implored lawmakers to pass bills removing the sales tax on diapers and expanding paid family leave. Advocates focused on how these policies would improve Mississippi’s workforce participation rate – the lowest in the nation.  Mississippi has  room to improve, child care experts say. For example, the enhanced pandemic funding didn’t expand eligibility. Instead, it allowed the program to reach more families. At the height of the pandemic, Mississippi served 1 in 3 eligible children. But now, that gap has more than doubled, and the state has returned to serving only 1 in 7, according to the Mississippi Department of Human Services.  Biz Harris, executive director of Mississippi Early Learning Alliance, speaks during a press conference on affordable child care and tax relief for family necessities Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, at the Capitol in Jackson. Credit: Eric Shelton/Mississippi Today In recent weeks, the department’s director,  Bob Anderson, has expressed a commitment to exploring a funding model that advocates proposed months ago as a solution to the child care crisis.  That model involves using funds from the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families from past years. Fully addressing the waitlist – and resolving child care needs for each household – would cost $50 to $60 million, according to Anderson. At the end of January, Anderson said the department has roughly that much unallocated money. Lawmakers have criticized Anderson for waffling on the amount of money he’s requesting for child care. At several recent hearings, Anderson testified that he would welcome as much as the Legislature was willing to give. However, he did not ask for additional child care funding, citing other priorities, including federal costs for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that shifted to the state as a result of the so-called One Big Beautiful Bill.  “DHS has drawn a lot of scrutiny for asking for just level funding,” Rep. Cheikh Taylor, a Democrat from Starkville and chair of the Mississippi Democratic Party, told Mississippi Today. “We need solutions, and sometimes, a budget that is well-crafted and curated can help that conversation. So, if they need $30 million, we need to know.” During a Legislative Black Caucus hearing on Jan. 28, Rep. Zakiya Summers, a Democrat from Jackson, asked Anderson, “Have you ever heard of the saying ‘a closed mouth don’t get fed’?”  Summers urged the agency to request what it needs to resolve the crisis, and has told Mississippi Today she is looking into all options, including using general funds, state health department funds and workforce development funds.  Sen. Nicole Boyd, a Republican from Oxford, on Thursday mentioned another bill she hopes will alleviate stress on parents struggling to find affordable child care.  Senate Bill 2867 would amend a policy passed in 2023 called the Child Care Tax Credit. This policy offers a 50% income tax credit to employers who either provide their employees with child care during work hours or provide at least $6,000 in a stipend to a licensed child care provider for their employees. The program has had virtually no uptake. Lawmakers, however, hope that will change if they lower the threshold to $3,000.  Meanwhile, child care providers are asking for substantial and immediate public investment in the child care voucher program, which they say is critical.  “It’s not a giveaway,” said Theophilus King, who runs Christian Mission Learning Center in Jackson, which lost more than half of its 120 children since April. “What you’re doing is you are simply allowing parents to go to work and their children to have quality, affordable child care that will prepare them for school.” ...read more read less