House narrowly fails to grant lawmaker's dying wish of free school meals
Apr. 14—CONCORD — House supporters came up just shy of passing a bill (HB 1212) dramatically increasing the number of families eligible for their children to receive free school lunches.
Lawmakers had hoped to pass it in part as a tribute to one of the bill's prime authors, who recently died.
House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, ended up breaking the tie and casting the deciding ballot in a 192-191 vote last Thursday to table the measure.
As proposed, the bill would have raised eligibility for free lunches and school breakfasts from household incomes at 130% of the federal poverty level, or $40,560 for a family of four, up to 300%, which is $109,740 for the same-sized family.
Students are currently eligible for reduced-price meals at family incomes between 130% and 185% of the federal standard.
The 185% level equals $57,720 for a family of four.
On his deathbed, three-term Rep. Art Ellison, D-Concord, had pleaded with the House to endorse the bill that also became a top priority of New Hampshire Hunger Solutions, an advocacy group.
Ellison, 80, passed away recently without witnessing the bill's final defeat.
He served more than 35 years as a staffer in the Department of Education.
Earlier last Thursday, lawmakers gave remarks during a brief ceremony in his memory.
"The intent is simple: to support families that are vulnerable by providing access to school meals for children," said Rep. Muriel Hall, D-Bow, and the bill's prime author.
"We know school meals lead to improved attendance, behavior and academic success."
House Education Committee Chairman Rick Ladd, R-Haverhill, said his panel got varying cost estimates for the proposal that ranged from $50 million to $100 million annually.
Rep. Daniel Popovici-Muller, R-Windham, said it also appeared to him to be a nice bill that New Hampshire didn't really need.
"N.H. Hunger Solutions testified that they are not aware of any schoolchildren that are denied breakfast or lunch in our schools due to their inability to pay," he said.
"Neither does the Department of Education (DOE) have any data showing that children are not being fed by schools because of their inability to pay."
But Rep. Mary Heath, D-Manchester, a former top state education official, said that claim ignores reality.
"New Hampshire has 100,000 individuals living in poverty. Homelessness is at an all-time high," she said. "Food insecurity is associated with poorer adult and child health, poor sleep quality, mental health disorders, higher probability of common chronic diseases, problems with language development in children, school performance and social interactions for children, higher rates of asthma and lower physical growth potential for children, and higher risk of maternal depression and anxiety among mothers."
Only three House Republicans defied their leadership to try to salvage the bill: Reps. Dan Wolf of Newbury; Mike Bordes of Laconia; and Dick Thackston of Troy.
All House Democrats and two independents who were elected as Democrats backed it.
The bill that wouldn't die
Supporters also didn't give up easily.
Hours after that vote, House Democratic Leader Matt Wilhelm's leadership twice returned to the microphone to try resurrect the bill.
The first time they lost, 189-188, and the second time they failed, 188-185.
Hall said that if the measure had been revived, they had a proposal prepared to reduce the scope of the legislation, expanding free meal eligibility to 250% of the poverty level, or an income of $91,450 a year.
House Finance Committee Chairman Kenneth Weyler, R-Kingston, said passing this bill would jeopardize the survival of other spending bills they had already adopted, including a $50 million allotment to pay down debt in the state retirement system and a $100 million-a-year increase in state aid to education.
"We just can't afford to do this," Weyler said.
According to the Department of Education, 24% of students, or 37,380, were eligible for a free or reduced-price school lunch during the 2022-23 school year.
The DOE estimated the legislation could lead to up to 96,000 students receiving free meals, equal to about 60% of all public and charter school students in the state.
Compilation
A complication of the bill was that not all schools participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) or School Breakfast Program (SBP).
The bill does not require them to do so; 38 schools don't participate in either program.
The bill would have required state taxpayers to cover the cost of meals for all students who qualify.
The federal government reimburses schools $2.28 for a free breakfast and $1.90 for a reduced-price morning meal. The state kicks in 30 cents toward the cost of most breakfasts given to eligible students.
All told, Ellison's bill had 10 votes until the final one last Thursday, and for months it seemed to be the bill that wouldn't die.
Last February right out of the gate, an initial move to pass the bill failed, 188-187.
When House Majority Leader Joe Sweeney, R-Salem, tried to kill it outright, he initially succeeded by the same count, 188-187.
Yet hours later the same day, sensing they had better numbers, House Democrats pushed and got the House to reconsider its decision.
The House then initially passed it, 193-175.
Thursday's measure, however, means it's almost certainly gone for good, at least for this session.
The vote came on the final day of crossover, when all House bills had to be passed over to the Senate. Now a two-thirds vote is required to un-table any bill, and unlikely prospect in the closely divided House of Representatives.
