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Page 7 Given the necessity of child care for families, the federal government, in partnership with states, provides assistance for child care to qualifying families through the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG). To comply with CCDBG guidelines, the Federal Office of Child Care requires the state of Mississippi, as a CCDBG partner, to periodically study and capture current market rates for child care in the state. These findings, along with estimates of the actual cost of providing child care, are used to determine state and federal levels of financial assistance through the Mississippi Child Care Payment Program, housed at the Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS). To study 2024 market rates for child care in Mississippi, MDHS contracted with the Systems Change Lab (SCL) at the Social Science Research Center (SSRC) at Mississippi State University. The SCL was charged with conducting a study that would capture rates across the state based on geographic location, provider type, and ages of children served. The SCL was also asked to determine if there were gaps between the existing subsidy rate and current market rates and what limitations or barriers may exist for providers’ participation in the Mississippi Child Care Payment Program. To do so, the SCL designed and administered the 1) Mississippi Center-based Child Care Market Rate Survey to licensed, center-based child care providers in Mississippi and the 2) Mississippi Home-based Child Care Market Rate Survey to home-based providers, some of whom were licensed, some registered with a state program, and some unregistered. Additionally, the SCL partnered with Prenatal to Five Fiscal Strategies to conduct a study of child care costs in Mississippi. The findings of this study have been used to create a Mississippi Child Care Costs Calculator and to estimate the costs of providing care. These findings are presented in a separate Narrow Cost Analysis report and will also inform child care subsidy rates. The results of the 2024 Mississippi Child Care Market Rate Survey are detailed in this report, which is divided into four main sections: 1) Survey methodology for licensed, center-based child care providers, 2) Results for licensed, center-based child care providers, 3) Survey methodology for home-based providers, and 4) Results for home- based providers. INTRODUCTION