State Senate Delays Starting Date, but OKs School Breakfast Bill

The state Senate voted Friday to expand California’s school breakfast programs to thousands of hungry children, but delayed the starting date until next year.

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Some Republicans opposed the $500,000 bill by Sen. Lucy Killea (I-San Diego), saying that the funds would be better spent on education in the classroom. Supporters argued that youngsters with empty stomachs cannot learn.

“If the stomach hurts, nothing gets through to the brain,” said Sen. Diane Watson (D-Los Angeles).

On a 26-6 vote, the bill went to an uncertain future in the Assembly. If approved by the Assembly and signed by Gov. Pete Wilson, it would take effect Jan. 1, 1996, rather than immediately as was originally intended.

The bill would provide $10,000 in existing state grants to schools where parents and officials apply to begin breakfast programs for low-income children.

Supporters noted that the state funds are available in the current budget and would be spent to buy start-up equipment such as refrigerators, stoves and trays. Food and other recurring costs of school meal programs are paid by the federal government.

Republicans first defeated the bill Monday when it failed to get the necessary two-thirds majority of 27 votes for passage as an urgency measure to become effective as soon as it was signed.

When the bill returned for another vote Friday, the GOP again blocked its approval. But to get around the two-thirds requirement, Killea struck out the urgency provision, which then made it eligible for approval by a simple majority of 21 votes. With that amendment, the bill passed.

Craig Reynolds, an aide to Killea, said supporters had hoped that the bill would become law so it could take effect by the start of the next school term this fall.

The legislation remains available for possible negotiations in the Assembly.

The bill would expand school programs to additional campuses by relaxing eligibility requirements. Instead of 40% or more of the student body being poor enough to want or need a breakfast meal, a school could qualify with 30% of its students designated as needy.

The state Department of Education estimates that the Killea bill would provide breakfasts to 65,000 more children at 316 schools in California, Reynolds said. Last year, nearly 5,000 schools served breakfast.

Wilson vetoed a similar bill last year because it would have imposed the breakfast programs on schools whether they wanted them or not. He said such programs should be voluntary.

“This is voluntary,” Killea said of her bill. “There is no mandate.” So far, Wilson has not taken a position on the revised bill, an aide said.

But Senate Republicans said the funds should be spent instead for classroom purposes. Some voiced fear that the money would be spent on salaries and public relations campaigns aimed at promoting federal meal programs.

“We ought to spend school money on educating kids,” said freshman Sen. Raymond N. Haynes (R-Riverside). Sen. Newton R. Russell (R-Glendale) suggested that the money would be better spent on contracting with local caterers to provide breakfasts.

In an unusual lobbying effort to recruit GOP support for her bill, Killea on Friday hand-carried trays of free breakfasts to the offices of Republicans who had voted against the bill Monday.

Included with the breakfasts of cold cereal, milk and fruit was a place mat identifying schools in each legislator’s district and the number of children that would be fed if the bill became law.

An aide said it was unknown how many legislators actually ate the breakfasts. But Sen. Maurice Johannessen (R-Redding), who had cast a no vote earlier, on Friday publicly thanked Killea for “the wonderful breakfast. I do appreciate it.” On the final vote, he abstained.

Three GOP members--Republican leader Ken Maddy of Fresno, Dave Kelley of Idyllwild and Dick Monteith of Modesto--switched their votes from no to yes on the final roll call Friday. The no votes were cast by GOP Sens. Bill Leonard of Big Bear Lake, Tim Leslie of Carnelian Bay, John Lewis of Orange, Richard Mountjoy of Arcadia, Russell and Haynes.