Today, in front of a room full of activists, business executives, nonprofit leaders, and engaged citizens, leaders representing all four of the Legislature’s Democratic and Republican caucuses visually indicated that they support making no cost school meals truly universal, as many other states have done in the last year, but which the Washington State Legislature failed to get done in the 2023 session.
It was by far the brightest moment of CityClub’s 2024 Legislative Preview, which took place at the Columbia Tower Club from noon to just after 1:30 PM.
House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon (D), House Minority Leader Drew Stokesbary (R), Senate Deputy Majority Leader Manka Dhingra (D, an NPF boardmember) and Senate Minority Leader John Braun (R) all raised green cards when co-moderator Drew Mikkelsen of KING5 asked them about free lunches for K‑12 in the “lightning round” of the legislative preview.
The bipartisan audience immediately broke out in cheers and applause upon seeing that the entire panel was supportive of no cost, universal school meals.
Watch the moment by clicking play in the video below:
Getting no cost school meals funded for all Washington elementary pupils is one of the Northwest Progressive Institute’s top legislative priorities for 2024, so we are very heartened to see this “Four Corners” support. Legislators allocated money to provide some students’ meals at no cost last year, but left the job undone, while other states got across the finish line, like Minnesota.
In 2023, NPI’s research found that close to two-thirds of likely Washington State voters support making no cost school meals universal. We released our finding last March; here’s the question we asked and the responses we received:
QUESTION: The Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction has proposed that school meals be provided at no charge to all Washington students as part of their basic education. During the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, waivers from the federal government allowed all students to eat free of charge, but those waivers have now expired, which means 330,000 Washington students and their families must pay for school meals again. The cost to taxpayers to provide meals at no charge to every student is estimated to be nearly $100 million per year. Do you strongly support, somewhat support, somewhat oppose, or strongly oppose universal K‑12 meals, enabling all students to have a healthy breakfast and lunch at school without fees, regardless of family income status?
ANSWERS:
- Support: 64%
- Strongly support: 42%
- Somewhat support: 22%
- Oppose: 33%
- Somewhat oppose: 12%
- Strongly oppose: 21%
- Not sure: 4%
Chris Reykdal’s team has renewed their prior request of state legislators to make no cost school meals universal, at least for students in elementary, explaining: “Hungry students cannot focus fully on learning. While Washington has made great strides in expanding access to free school meals, the state must continue investing in feeding students until meals with no out-of-pocket costs is just part of the school day for all students.”
“As part of the agency’s long-term goal, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) requests funding to provide nutritious school meals to all of Washington’s elementary school students. Funding will supplement federal reimbursement and cover costs for schools who are not eligible to participate in federal universal meal options to ensure every elementary-aged student has the same opportunity.”
“Under this proposal, state funding will cover the cost of breakfast and lunch that would normally be paid for by the families of students who aren’t eligible for free or reduced-price meals,” OSPI’s formal request — known as a decision package in legislative parlance — adds. “School meals are funded on a reimbursement basis, meaning funding is only provided for meals served to students. Specifically, state funds would pay the difference between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Free Rate and the USDA Paid Rate. This supplemental reimbursement would be paid to school districts in place of receiving money from families.”
“If the Legislature invests in this proposal, Washington’s youngest learners will be able to rely on a nutritious breakfast and lunch each day as part of their learning experience. Along with the financial support to families, free meals for all also eliminates the stigma around school meals. Historically, there has been a stigma around participation in school meal programs, especially breakfast. Viewed as a program for ‘poor’ students, many hungry students opt out of eating for fear of identifying themselves in front of their peers.”
That stigma will go away if the cost is covered for all elementary pupils’ meals.
And, school districts would be freed of an administrative burden:
“Additionally, when meals are free for all students, districts don’t need to spend resources on tracking and collecting meal debts. Contacting families and collecting money for meal charges takes a significant amount of time and contributes to a negative experience between families and schools. Providing school meals at no cost to the student or their family eliminates this problem.”
Read the decision package in its entirety below.
Decision package on no cost universal school mealsMaking sure kids don’t go hungry while eliminating a form of red tape? This is something every Washingtonian ought to be able to get behind.
Let’s make it happen in the 2024 session. Washington is a wealthy, affluent state, and our plan of government requires that we amply provide for the education of our youth. We cannot afford to keep shirking our paramount duty.
