In Alabama, it’s harder than ever to find and afford child care.

And parents are paying higher and higher percentages of their paychecks to find care, according to data from the new National Database of Childcare Prices. A new report from the group, which is part of the U.S. Department of Labor Women’s Bureau, also shows that the average cost of child care annually rose across the state.

In 2018, the average annual cost of a child attending a center-based preschool was $5,615. In 2022, the average cost was estimated to be $6,253. That’s an increase of 11%.

Parents with younger children also seen high increases for day care. And parents with infants often pay even more for regular care.

Alabama’s child care infrastructure has been a topic of discussion among parents, activists and lawmakers throughout the state.

In September, AL.com reported data from the Bipartisan Policy Center estimating about 85,550 Alabama children did not have access to legally operated and state-recognized care providers.

According to the report, Alabama also had the second highest percentage of children with all parents in the labor force in poverty in the U.S.

The members of Alabama’s Work Force and Wage Gap Task Force have said they plan to address child care options in their legislative recommendations for the upcoming state legislative session, which begins in March.

Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a surge in the amount of employed parents missing work for child care-related reasons.

In October 2022, 104,000 parents missed work nationally because of issues with caring for their children, which was the highest number the BLS has recorded. Numbers spiked in 2020 and have remained higher than before the pandemic.

According to the Labor Department’s new database, the annual cost for center-based child care for toddler-aged kids as a percentage of family income ranged from 6.9% to 18.1% in Alabama.

The data also shows cost disparities between Black and white Alabama residents. Alabama counties with higher percentages of white residents reportedly spent a lower percentage of their total family income on child care in 2018.

In 2022, Reckon News published an issue guide for Alabama voters regarding child care.

So far, no bills relating to child care have been pre-filed by lawmakers. The legislative session begins in March.