20 April 2019 — 1611 mdt
Bill that bans school lunch shaming remains
bottled-up in MT Senate’s education committee
As I reported on 10 April, HB-414 passed the MT House 67–32 on 27 February. On 25 March, it was heard by the MT Senate’s education and cultural resources committee:
- Proponents: Emily Dean, Montana School Boards Association; Marco Ferro, Montana Federation of Public Employees; Patricia Spencer, a parent representing herself.
- Opponents: none.
- Informational witness: Christine Emerson, Montana Office of Public Instruction.
Despite the support and the lack of opposition, the committee tabled the bill on 29 March. My sources report that Sen. Dan Salomon (R-Ronan, SD-47), the committee’s chair, and Sen. Russ Tempel (R-Chester, SD-14) oppose the bill.
Rep. Jessica Karjala (D-Billings, HD-48), the bill’s sponsor, reports that no member of the Senate will move to blast the bill out of the committee. Given the lack of expressed opposition, and the clearly expressed support of educational heavyweights, this is astonishing.
For some reason, people with political power want to preserve the option of shaming school children for the sins of their parents. These people are keeping quiet, which is understandable as they full well know that what they’re doing is shameful.
In her written testimony, Spencer identified the practical and moral dimensions of the issue:
It is never a good idea to say the students have ownership in what their parents owe to the school or any other creditor. They are kids, leave them be. Also, why would “shaming” young people ever be a viable solution? This can do nothing but make them feel less than and opens them up to be judged or bullied by peers. This problem is between the school and parents and the kids should be left out of the equation.
Montana has the distinction of having the highest suicide rate in the nation. Much of that problem starts with what happens to our children in our schools. This is not a partisan issue. This is about protecting our most precious resource, our children, and allowing them to be free of worry and stigma at school.
It’s time for Montanans who oppose school lunch shaming to let their blessings in the legislature know that HB-414 must be rescued from its undeserved captivity by the education committee; time to raise polite but firm holy hell with Salomon, Tempel, and the MT Senate’s minority leader, Sen Jon Sesso (D-Butte, SD-37).
It would also help if Montana’s news media would shine some sunlight on HB-414 and the underground effort to kill it.