Committee adopts working draft to make reduced‑price school meals free and hears broad testimony

The House Education Committee on March 13 adopted a committee substitute (work draft version T) for HB 12, a bill to make reduced‑price public‑school meals free by creating a public school reduced‑price meal fund and allowing voluntary PFD (permanent fund dividend) contributions to the fund.

Sponsor Representative Maxine Divert said the committee revised an earlier, higher‑cost proposal to focus on the reduced‑price population and reduce the fiscal impact. "By making reduced‑price meals free, this legislation targets some of Alaska's most vulnerable children for a relatively modest price," she said, adding the bill would make meals free for roughly 3,326 students statewide.

Seneca Roach, staff to Representative Divert, walked through the sectional changes: creation of AS 14.03.0.128 establishing a general‑fund public school reduced‑price meal fund, distribution rules that ensure proportional funds if money is insufficient, statutory changes to permit PFD 'pick, click, give' contributions and Department of Revenue administration steps, and a proposed effective date of July 1, 2026.

Witnesses urged support. Dr. Lisa Paradis, executive director of the Alaska Council of School Administrators, described widespread reliance on school nutrition after the end of pandemic federal funding in June 2023 and cited statistics the council uses in testimony: "According to the Food Bank of Alaska, more than 51 percent of our public school students qualify for free or reduced price school meals." She emphasized research linking breakfast access to improved cognition, attendance and test scores.

Becky Zaveril, principal at Denali Elementary in Fairbanks, described day‑to‑day consequences at a Title I school: 305 students, roughly 62% free/reduced, about $380,000 in Title I funding tied to that percentage, and weekly unpaid lunch debt her school covers through principal accounts and community donations. "Hunger is the number one reason that you see kids not paying attention," she testified.

Rachel Miller, chief advocacy officer at Food Bank of Alaska, supported the bill and cited a Feeding America estimate that roughly 1 in 5 Alaska children experience hunger; she called HB 12 "a measured step" that reduces barriers and stigma for students.

Committee members asked for more district‑level cost detail and input from DEED child‑nutrition staff before final action; the committee set the bill aside for further work but retained version T as the working document.

Key bill details in the adopted work draft include the new statute (AS 14.03.0.128), PFD donation mechanisms (AS 43.23.0130 amendments), Department of Revenue administration steps, a prohibition on withholding coordination fees for contributions, and an effective date of July 1, 2026. The committee did not take a final vote to enact law; staff will return with additional fiscal analysis at a later hearing.