Legislation for school recess dies

FEBRUARY 24, 2017  ATLANTA Students in Lisa Cunningham's second grade class play during a recess at the Burgess-Peterson Academy.   Kent D. Johnson/AJC

FEBRUARY 24, 2017 ATLANTA Students in Lisa Cunningham's second grade class play during a recess at the Burgess-Peterson Academy. Kent D. Johnson/AJC

Legislation that inspired passionate testimony from children died under Georgia's Gold Dome Thursday as this year's legislative session came to an end.

House Bill 273 started life as a mandate for a half an hour of daily recess in schools. It was amended by a Senate committee to a mandate to schedule recess but only a recommendation to follow that schedule.

The bill passed the House of Representatives by an overwhelming 147-17 in early March but was not called up for a vote by the Senate.