Hawaiʻi lawmakers spent big on public schools this year

Daniela Spoto, director of food equity at Hawaiʻi Appleseed, wanted to see a greater focus on food security for students this session. While three bills aimed to increase students’ access to free school meals, Spoto said staffing constraints in DOE’s food services branch may have prevented the initiatives from moving forward.

Appleseed estimated it could cost the state an additional $15 million to $25 million a year to offer free breakfast and lunch to all Hawaiʻi students.

“We went into it (the session) with a heavy dose of skepticism,” Spoto said, adding that she’s hopeful the initiative will make more progress next year.

Efforts to expand early learning also saw limited success, even as the state inches closer to its ambitious deadline of offering pre-kindergarten to all 3- and 4-year-olds by 2032.

Deborah Zysman, executive director of Hawaiʻi Children’s Action Network, said a bill offering subsidies to child care providers would have been an important step toward retaining more workers in the early learning field. A University of Hawaii study estimated that early learning providers earn between $13 and $17 per hour, and persistently low wages contribute to Hawaii’s workforce shortage, Zysman said.

The bill received strong support but died in the final weeks of the session, with lawmakers citing insufficient funds for the subsidies, Zysman said.

Zysman added that she’s pleased a different bill passed that allows public lands, like courthouses or libraries, to host child care and preschool programs. But, she said, more needs to be done to support families and children moving forward.

“Kids kind of got passed over this year,” Zysman said.