Just My Opinion by Mary Kilen
Lunch Bill Fails
As legislators gathered in Bismarck last week for a special session called by Governor Armstrong, the main focus was on the rural health funding the state would receive. A secondary focus came as legislators looked at options for funding free lunches for students. There were two bills. One would have raised the income levels for those eligible. The second would provide free lunches for all students. The change would have gone into effect for the next school year.
As the bills went to the House, the second bill, providing free breakfast and lunch for all students, was the one that passed and was sent to the Senate. The bill failed there, meaning there would be no change coming out of this special session.
All of this came as there is a potential initiated measure coming before voters in the November election. Signatures are being collected on the petitions to put the issue to a vote.
Legislators looked at taking the issue into their own hands, in part because of concerns that the initiated measure would make this part of the state’s constitution. By passing one of the bills before them, it would have been easier to make changes in the future if funding became an issue.
I’ve read and listened to the arguments both in favor and opposed to the bills. Some of it, I understand. Others, I struggle with. We live in a state where we have been blessed with economic opportunity. We also live in a state where some of that opportunity is greatly impacted by forces outside of our control.
I know that there are already state and federal programs in place to help families pay for their students’ breakfast and lunch. I know that the application process is fairly simple. The state guidelines for free and reduced meals set the income levels at a higher level for eligibility than federal levels.
However, consider that level. The state eligibility level sits at $72,000 for a family of four. That sounds like a lot, until you stop to think about how much of that is reduced just by taxes withheld from a paycheck. Then add up house payments or rent, car payments, health insurance, car insurance, utility costs, medications, groceries and all the other normal incidentals a family faces each month. There may be little left once you figure all of that out. For many that are living paycheck to paycheck, they are just one unexpected medical bill or car repair away from the brink.
I heard the arguments against this bill that included the parental responsibility, socialism, and less reliance on big government.
All I know is that it is true that students can qualify for free and reduced meals. I know that there are other federal funding programs in schools that are tied to those numbers that qualify and are approved for the free and reduced meals. I assume that should this bill have passed, families would still have been asked to fill out these forms to assure compliance with and payment from the federal programs for lunch reimbursement and other programs. I might be wrong.
I find myself agreeing with the majority of the legislators who voted in favor of this bill. While it failed in the Senate, it was only by a two vote margin. It passed with a larger margin in the house.
I don’t want to ever see a child go hungry or a family struggle just to pay that lunch bill. It is obvious that we have hunger issues across our state. The number of families that are needing assistance from food pantries continues to grow. The number of families served by the SACK program continues to grow. In Stanley, there is an Angel Fund that helps to pay off lunch debt for families unable to make those payments. Other school districts have similar funds. These funds are made possible by the generous gifts given to ensure that children are fed.
I don’t know what the right answer is, but I do know there are families that face food insecurity. I know those families count on school meals and other programs. It seems to me that of all the things the state is willing to spend money on, feeding our children should be a no brainer.
I guess it will now be up to the voters if the petition organizers gather the required signatures. I will be interested to see how that vote turns out.
Communities Vie To Be America’s Favorite Small Town
I saw this story on the news last week. KFYR’s Jody Kerzman was sharing the story of eighteen North Dakota towns competing for the title of America’s Favorite Small Town.
This is a contest sponsored by Parade magazine and state tourism leaders are encouraged to have so many finalists from our state. It shows the many things that make each town unique. It is also interesting to see that these cities are from nearly every corner of the state and also varying in size.
The 18 towns vying for the title are Beulah, Bowman, Carrington, Crosby, Devils Lake, Dickinson, Garrison, Hazen, Jamestown, Lisbon, Medora, Minot, New Town, Regent, Valley City, Williston, Wishek and Linton.
The winning town will be announced in June. To cast your vote, visit America’s Favorite Small Towns at https://americasfavoritesmalltowns.parade.com/.
Baby It’s Cold Outside
When the weathermen started predicting brutal cold in North Dakota last week, I held my breath. I was hoping they were wrong, but no such luck. Poor Buddy wanted nothing to do with the cold. He was making quick work of taking care of business when he was outside. I could see where that leg he broke was being impacted by the extreme cold.
It was miserable, but I see that they are now predicting warmer temperatures for February. I don’t think any of us will complain about that.
Meanwhile, we haven’t heard from Dale’s brother Ron during this cold snap. That’s a bit unusual because he generally likes to call and rub that in. Maybe that’s because he was in the pathway of that storm that was ripping across the nation over the weekend and into Monday. Dale and I talked about calling him and asking how his weather was, but we really didn’t want to talk about how cold it was here.