Some form of a universally free school breakfast for public students in Connecticut may end up becoming a reality after this year’s budget session. Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz said she feels broadly optimistic the move will gain support from the state legislature.
“The fact that the governor put free breakfast into his proposed budget, and then the budget that came out of the Appropriations Committee has it is, I think, a very good sign, a positive sign that both the Governor and legislators want to see this happen,” Bysiewicz said.
Bysiewicz led a panel on the proposals at the state capitol Monday. The panel occurred after a recent rally advocating for free breakfasts which advocates say, can help with academic performance and reduce stigma over inequality among students.
While Bysiewicz pointed out Lamont and state legislators have separate but similar proposals, she and State Rep. Moira Rader say the proposals still face additional decision making in the state legislature as the budget session gets closer to its May deadline.
Rader said the state bill has broad support from at least 100 state legislators. Rader said both proposals would cost around $12 million and would meetan urgent need, referring to federal cutbacks to food aid programs such as SNAP near the end of 2025.
“We got to see firsthand how much food insecurity is prevalent across a lot of our communities, and not just the ones that you would presuppose would have food insecurity,” Rader said. “We saw lines at our food pantries. We saw great demand with Connecticut Foodshare.”
Miranda Muro, senior director of Network Relations at Connecticut Foodshare, said nearly every community throughout the state has residents suffering from food insecurity.
While speaking before the panel, Muro said free school breakfast helps reduce stress for families already facing financial strain.
Bysiewicz cautioned budget negotiations are ongoing, but she said the proposal has more support this time around.
“The Governor and I proposed free breakfast and free lunch last year,” Bysiewicz said. “That didn't happen, but sometimes it takes several years to get a good piece of legislation passed, so all signs look good so far because the legislature has included it in the budget that they put out.”
One of the speakers at the panel has more hands-on experience with the issue.
Eddie Diaz, a social worker for Hartford Public Schools, said having free school breakfast will lead to more engaged students.
Diaz mentioned encountering students who admitted they were going hungry when he asked about their performance in school. He says providing free breakfast just makes sense.
“This is just a basic necessity for our students to thrive in our schools,” Diaz said.
