On June 12, 2014, the Charter School Law celebrated its 17-year anniversary, following calls for legislative reform of its most fundamental flaws.
Senate Bill 1316 and House Bill 2138, both tabled this month, would, among other things, revamp the funding for charter school education, consistent with the actual cost of special education. Following the proposal of both bills, in May 2014, the Auditor General released a report calling for further Charter School Law reform.
Here is a summary of the report:
Although both tasked with the common purpose of providing a free and appropriate public education, charter schools and school districts are often pitted against each other due to the current charter school funding formula. Currently, school districts pay a tuition charge for each resident student attending a charter school. An inherent inefficiency, however, is that tuition costs are not based upon the charter school’s costs, but the district’s costs. The school districts are required to oversee the charter schools; yet no funding is provided for this task.
The Auditor General, the Commonwealth’s fiscal watchdog, launched a statewide public hearing process to receive testimony from officials associated with both charter schools and school districts. These hearings culminated in a report issued by the Auditor General, last month. The report recommended that the legislature take immediate action as follows:
The state should fund and staff an independent statewide charter school oversight board which would be comprised of individuals appointed by the governor and both caucuses of the house and senate.
The responsibilities of the board would include clarifying and enforcing statutory provisions, regulations, and guidelines. Enforcement options include withholding payments to charter schools pending the resolution of issues, establishing an expedited revocation process, and providing support to school districts trying to obtain documents and other information from charter schools.
After seeking input to develop a streamlined and expedited process, the board would also be charged with implementing a new charter school appeals process, particularly addressing the expensive and protracted revocations process that exist today.
The board would also be in charge of establishing new reporting requirements for charter schools. The state would create a special division so that school districts could challenge a charter schools designation of a student as special education. This process would address current concerns that students are being misclassified as special education students so that the charter school can receive a bigger tuition reimbursement.
Cyber school funding would be changed so that they are no longer funded by school districts. Cyber schools, who are authorized to operate by PDE, would be funded by the state.
The charter school laws and guidelines would be updated to reflect “current realities.” There should be a uniform, statewide admissions process for charter schools. Charter schools should be required to evaluate teachers and principals using the same performance measures as public schools.
Gleaned from his discussion at public hearings, the Auditor General noted a serious problem with the charter school funding formula, a mathematical calculation of funding from local school districts to charter schools that is not based upon the actual cost of educating students. Particularly, the Auditor General noted a disparity in the special education formula, which mandates a significantly higher payment for special education students, regardless of the severity of the student’s disabilities or the level of service provided. This fundamentally unfair funding formula is, according to the Auditor General, at the heart of the tension between charters and local districts.
Charter schools, like all public schools, must be transparent and must comply with Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know laws. The failure to comply with the Right-to-Know laws would be a factor for a school district to consider when receiving a renewal application.
The Bottom Line
For the sake of both charters and districts, something needs to be done. While the Auditor General’s report does not carry the force of law, it may be an impetus for legislative reform, and a reason to keep the pressure on the legislature to get something done. We will keep you updated on any changes in the Charter School Law.
School Law Bullets are a publication of the KingSpry Education Law Practice Group. John E. Freund, III, is our editor. The article is meant to be informational and does not constitute legal advice.
