Senate approves funding for Mississippi’s child care crisis. Will it survive the House? ...Middle East

The Senate voted Thursday to spend $15 million on child care vouchers to help alleviate the pressure on roughly 20,000 low-income Mississippi families waitlisted for subsidies since pandemic-era federal funds ran out in April.  

This funding is not set in stone. The Senate Appropriations committee added it to House Bill 1909, the budget for the Department of Human Services, which will be amended again before reaching Gov. Tate Reeves’ desk for signature. 

Rep. Clay Deweese, a Republican from Oxford and principal author of the original bill, told Mississippi Today late Thursday he hadn’t had time to look at the amendment. Deweese also said he didn’t think it would be prudent to state his opinion on the issue. When asked why the House version didn’t include that $15 million for child care, Deweese said it was “just the House position.”

“I’m not going to get into these conversations,” Deweese said when pressed on the issue. “I’m not going to be put in these positions.”

Rep. Sam Creekmore, a Republican from New Albany and an additional author of the bill, told Mississippi Today that with the “limited knowledge” he has about the situation, he would be in favor of keeping the Senate’s amendment. 

Amaya Jones, a single mother of a 6-year-old and 1-year-old in Jackson who works full-time at Kroger, has been without vouchers since June. Jones’ mother cares for her kids most days, but she has health conditions. Sometimes, her mother is too sick to care for them, Jones said, and two or three times a month has to go to the doctor. On those days, Jones has to miss work. 

“I just hope they understand,” said Jones, who worries about getting fired from her job. 

Jones is among thousands struggling to make ends meet while securing care for their children statewide. Advocates who have been calling on the state to address Mississippi’s 11-month child care crisis say the $15 million is critical, but it would only address a fraction of the waitlist. 

“Even with this needed investment, thousands of families will remain on the child care waiting list and working parents will go without access to child care,” said Matt Williams, director of research at the Mississippi Low-Income Child Care Initiative. 

Resolving the waitlist would require about $60 million, according to public statements made by Bob Anderson, director of the Mississippi Department of Human Services. 

On the floor Thursday, Sen. David Blount, a Democrat from Jackson, said he would like to increase funding from $15 million when the bill goes to conference. Last year, the Legislature appropriated $15 million to the voucher program for the first time. Blount said need has increased since then, and addressing it should be a legislative priority.

“We have a real problem with child care in the state,” Blount told Mississippi Today.

The bill includes a reverse repealer. That means legislators will be required to have more debate and at least one more vote before the bill can be passed into law. That is common for large agency budget bills, which are often renegotiated several times before the end of a legislative session. 

Meanwhile, child care providers continue to struggle. 

One of those providers, Lynne Black, has lost nearly 100 children since April. At the two centers she runs in Tupelo, Black said she is down from 14 employees to five. Black said regaining about a quarter of her voucher children won’t put her anywhere near financial stability, but at least it would allow her centers to stay open. Right now, she said, closure is imminent.

“I’d give it til end of April, beginning of May,” Black said.

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