By Susan Geier
Granite State News Collaborative

Child care is a vital part of the state’s economic engine, but the damage COVID-19 is having on that industry is still unfolding.

John Hamilton of the N.H. Community Loan Fund — whose programs include financial and other assistance for childcare providers around the state — called the pandemic a “biological hurricane” that has reduced child care in the state to 30 percent of its capacity.

“It’s a tough business to run in the good times,” said Hamilton, the organization’s vice president of economic opportunity. “We are trying to mobilize resources so we can stabilize child care and early-learning centers. The key right now is to meet them where they are at — really guide them through the restarting of their programs and business with a path forward.”

The organization Early Learning NH — a nonprofit that raises awareness about the early childhood systems and is a member organization for childcare providers — made a presentation on the industry in May to the Legislative Advisory Committee for the Governor’s Office for Emergency Relief and Recovery. It reported there was a capacity of 46,023 available childcare slots in February and just 4,875 children in attendance in April. The state’s childcare industry allows working parents to generate $4.4 billion of state gross domestic product in fixed 2000 dollars. The childcare industry contributes approximately $2.5 billion to personal income in New Hampshire each year, according to Early Learning NH.

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