State preschool-funding measures took a hit last week from lawmakers in two large, rural states, although proponents of snubbed proposals insist they鈥檙e not done yet.
In Alaska, a broad budget bill restoring in funding for a prekindergarten program was rejected by the Republican-controlled legislature on March 12. Some Alaskan lawmakers have a squabble with fudning public preschool at all, not just with increasing state budgets.
鈥淗ow about pre-preschool?鈥� said Rep. Bob Lynn, R-Anchorage, according to an . 鈥淗ow about pre-pre-pre? How far back do you start? Do you start education in the maternity ward?鈥�
In fact, some experts do advocate starting education鈥攑arent education, at least鈥�. But apparently, that program won鈥檛 be coming to Alaska any time soon.
鈥淭he issue is not dead,鈥� Rep. Cathy Mu帽oz, R-Juneau, told the Juneau Empire, referring to public education funding more broadly, which suffered after the March 12 vote. 鈥淚 believe that the education funding issue will be resolved in the final days [of negotiations].鈥�
In Montana, Gov. Steve Bullock鈥檚 proposed $37 million preschool program was on March 10. But the two-year public preschool proposal is not dead, according to Denise Juneau, the state鈥檚 Democratic schools superintendent. She told The Missoulian that she expects supporters to try to insert the proposal in the budget bill again this week.
Currently, Montana is one of only a handful of states with no state-funded public preschool program. The state won from the U.S. Department of Education in December. Some of that money could go toward the preschool proposal that was just rejected by the state鈥檚 legislature, but if the legislation funding request is ultimately not approved, that won鈥檛 affect the grant, according to Allyson Hagen, a spokesperson for the Montana Office of Public Instruction.
鈥淲ork on the grant has already started and will continue whether the legislative proposal passes or not,鈥� Hagen wrote by email.
The legislature will consider another version of its budget bill, which will again contain the governor鈥檚 proposal, on Thursday, March 19.