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Childcare Impediment Officially Lifted by DHS

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A staff member wearing a Mississippi Low Income Child Care Initiative t-shirt, listens as officials speak about a policy change by the Mississippi Department of Human Services, that removed a child support requirement for the Child Care Payment Program, at a news conference Monday, May 15, 2023, in Jackson, Miss.
 (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

A policy requiring those who are seeking assistance from a program to offset the cost of childcare officially ended yesterday. Activists believe it could help thousands of families across Mississippi. 

Michael McEwen

Childcare Barrier Officially Lifted 

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For nearly 20 years, low-income households in Mississippi seeking financial assistance through the state's Child Care Payment Program, or CCPP, were required to prove child support compliance before receiving any funding. Operated by the Department of Human Services, the program offers low-income parents with financial help, based on market rate averages, to pay for the cost of child care. 

The change, initially recommended through a unanimous State Early Childhood Advisory Council vote last year, could make the process of obtaining funding much easier. An estimated half of Mississippi children live in single family homes, according to data provided by the DHS. 

“It’s very, very discouraging when you’re trying to apply and you’re still getting rejected because of the red tape,” said Jamese Wiley, a single mother from Jackson who has worked closely with case workers at the Mississippi Low Income Child Care Initiative for over a year. 

“It’s completely overwhelming considering all of the mothers out there who are falling through the cracks, but single moms have to go through a lot to make it on our own and provide for our families. We all want economic security for our families, and having childcare makes that possible.” 

Wiley says she intends to go back to school to improve her job prospects, but having to meet the stringent CCPP requirement, even if compliant, can delay the process for weeks. 

“The system required a court order for each of my children, and despite me being compliant I had to make several calls and take time away from work to go back and forth from the DHS office, and I was still forced to wait six weeks before I could receive assistance,” she said. “As a result of that, I had to pay the full amount out of pocket to my childcare provider. She tried to work with me, but she also has a business to run.” 

Belinda Thornton has been a case worker within the state's childcare field for over 30 years, helping single-parent households navigate the system and find work. 

“The biggest complaint is the child support requirement,” she said. “There are people who don’t want to go through child support for various reasons, and because they don’t they can’t receive child care services.” 

Those reasons can range from not wanting to jeopardize an informal child support payment to avoiding abusive interactions, according to Thornton. 

Advocates for the change gathered at Jackson-based organization Springboard to Opportunities to celebrate what they described as a victory in a nearly 20-year fight. 

“I’ve had parents who had to quit their jobs because they weren’t able to afford it, and I’ve had parents who’ve had to quit school because of that same reason. Parents who have had to go from a higher paying job to a lower paying job so the hours would work better for them,” said Thornton. 

State Director of Early Childhood Care and Development Chad Allgood says the agency is now determining if they will extend the program to those who are in the process of seeking employment.