PIERRE — Democrats are once again walking away empty-handed in their attempt to boost early childhood learning in South Dakota.

The House State Affairs Committee voted 9-2 along party lines to defeat House Bill 1175, which would create an Early Learning Advisory Council.

The bill would have established a 12-person council, appointed by the governor, to study where preschool gaps exist in the state and allow the state to begin receiving some federal funds for preschool programs, at an estimated cost of $10,000 to $14,000 to the state. The bill wasn't mandating that children attend preschool.

South Dakota is one of only a handful of states that doesn't provide state-funded preschool and attempts at similar legislation have failed in previous legislative sessions.

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Bill supporters said the council is the first step in ensuring South Dakota children are ready to enter kindergarten, especially considering that 74 percent of South Dakota households have two working parents, but committee members largely said it's the parents' responsibility to educate children prior to their K-12 education. The state Department of Education also opposed the bill.

Educating children prior to kindergarten isn't a boon to the state like it's touted, but rather is an attempt at "instilling a socialist agenda into the system," said Rep. Steven Haugaard, R-Sioux Falls. The South Dakota Constitution implies that the state's objective in providing education to create intelligent voters, not to create educated workers in the state, he said.

"We want to make sure that families are strong. ... Strong families start at home, not in a public school setting and that's where it should stay," Haugaard said.

Rep. Jamie Smith, D-Sioux Falls, responded, "I've heard a lot of fear here from the opposition today."

He urged his colleagues to consider the bill's purpose, which is providing a structure for state leaders to understand what needs to be done to better the lives of South Dakota children. He also pointed out that not all families can afford to have a parent stay home, especially in his district in central Sioux Falls where there's a high rate of parents working multiple jobs to make ends meet.

Bill sponsor Rep. Erin Healy, D-Sioux Falls, also said legislators need to face the reality that not all parents can stay home to educate their children prior to kindergarten.

"These children run the risk of starting kindergarten behind their peers and statistics show that they will not catch up. Preschool can help level the playing field and give the children the opportunity to start school with a strong foundation, especially those who need it most," Healy said.

Educators told the committee that preschool helps children develop skills needed for their K-12 education, and studies show that receiving a formal education earlier than kindergarten leads to a decrease in the need for remedial programs, a decrease in adults committing violent crimes and a stronger work force, they said.

Rob Monson, executive director of the School Administrators of South Dakota, lamented about the repeated attempts to create an advisory council. He pointed out that no one at the state is even regulating the existing preschool programs, and someone with a felony conviction can legally operate a preschool in South Dakota.

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"I honestly cannot wrap my head around the reason why so many people are afraid to move this council forward," Monson said. "Let's rip the Band-aid off the wound and start having a serious conversation about what is good for students, mental health, work force development and a stronger South Dakota."

The state Department of Education opposed the bill because it estimates that the cost of the council could exceed $20,000, and the agency doubts that council would be able to complete a full assessment of the needs and gaps in early childhood education in the state, said Holly Farris, legal counsel for the Department of Education.

However, Healy responded that $20,000 is less than 0.1 percent of the Department of Education's budget and the agency had $838,000 in leftover funds in its 2017 budget and $276,000 in leftover funds in 2018.