Minnesota bill could provide free breakfast for all K-6 students

SAINT PAUL, Minn. — Free school breakfast for kindergartners through sixth grade, free student eye exams, free preschool for all 4-year-olds, more school counselors and more money to fix up aging schools could all come to pass under an ambitious package of education bills proposed by key DFL senators Wednesday.

Senate Education Committee Chairman Chuck Wiger of Maplewood unveiled the package of 11 bills flanked by a half-dozen other DFL senators. Wiger said the exact cost of the bills won’t be determined until late February, when the state’s economic forecast is released, but he said he hopes to get at least $500 million in funding.

Education has emerged as a top priority for DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, and on Wednesday the governor said in a statement that “I commend the Senate Majority Caucus for its excellent legislative priorities.”

Dayton stopped short of endorsing the proposals, but noted, “We have many shared goals, and I look forward to working with the Legislature to provide the resources and strategies our teachers and schools need.”

The bills, some of which have received bipartisan support, are about “creating the world’s best workforce,” Wiger said.

Many of the Senate bills are similar to proposals Dayton included in his budget recommendations late last month, including free preschool, the expansion of child care tax credits and free breakfast.

Sen. Sean Nienow, the lead Republican on the education committee, said Wednesday that the proposals appear to be good policies, but he added that the costs could quickly become staggering. He said the proposals were too broad and should be narrowed to lower-income or high-risk students.

“We need to target the resources,” said Nienow, of Cambridge. “When you throw that money at everyone, you end up spending a whole lot of money.”

House Republicans also have said that Dayton’s education proposals, particularly his free preschool plan, would likely need to be tweaked to ensure only lower-income Minnesotans qualify for the state assistance.