Fate of proposed free school meals expansion is in doubt in Washington Legislature
Plans to offer free breakfast and lunch to all public school students in Washington appear shaky ahead of a Friday deadline in the state Legislature.
About 70% of students in the state’s public schools now have access to the free meals. Reaching 100% would cost about $120 million a fiscal year. With the state facing a budget shortfall in the ballpark of $12 billion over the next four years and lawmakers contemplating other big-ticket education legislation, a bill to carry out the meals expansion is proving to be a heavy lift.
Asked during a press conference Wednesday whether the bill was a good idea proposed at the wrong time, Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, replied: “Yes.”
The Senate already allowed its version of the legislation to lapse last week in the Senate Early Learning and K-12 Education Committee as an earlier deadline came and went.
https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/02/26/fate-of-free-school-meals-expansion-is-in-doubt-in-washington-legislature/