MITCHELL, S.D.  (MITCHELLNOW) The emergency state of childcare is a big topic of discussion during South Dakota’s 100th Legislative Session. The state’s Child Care Task Force released its latest report of more than 60 pages with community success stories, data about the cost of childcare, and policy suggestions just before the session began last week. The report found that nearly 40 percent of South Dakota’s childcare programs have fewer children enrolled than they can handle because of a shortage of workers. It also showed that childcare providers are among the lowest wage-earners in the state, yet families are spending between 10 and 20 percent of their annual income on childcare. Now, lawmakers are prioritizing legislation to close this gap and increasing the state’s contribution to the Child Care Assistance program.