BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 739|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
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VETO
Bill No: SB 739
Author: Pavley (D)
Amended: 8/25/16
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 7-1, 4/15/15
AYES: Liu, Huff, Block, Hancock, Leyva, Mendoza, Pan
NOES: Vidak
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-2, 5/4/15
AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza
NOES: Bates, Nielsen
SENATE FLOOR: 23-11, 5/11/15
AYES: Allen, Beall, Block, Galgiani, Hall, Hancock, Hernandez,
Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Jackson, Lara, Leno, Leyva, McGuire,
Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Pan, Pavley, Roth, Wieckowski,
Wolk
NOES: Bates, Berryhill, Gaines, Huff, Moorlach, Morrell,
Nguyen, Nielsen, Runner, Stone, Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Anderson, Cannella, De León, Fuller, Liu
SENATE FLOOR: 25-13, 8/31/16
AYES: Allen, Beall, Block, De León, Glazer, Hall, Hancock,
Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Jackson, Lara, Leno, Leyva,
Liu, McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Pan, Pavley, Roth,
Wieckowski, Wolk
NOES: Anderson, Bates, Berryhill, Cannella, Fuller, Gaines,
Huff, Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Stone, Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Galgiani
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 51-26, 8/29/16 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Charter schools: sited outside boundaries:
prohibition
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SOURCE: Castaic Union School District
Newhall School District
Saugus Union School District
Sulphur Springs School District
William S. Hart Union High School District
DIGEST: This bill prohibits a school district from authorizing
a new charter school to locate outside of its jurisdiction if it
is assigned a negative budget certification.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Provides for the establishment of charter schools in
California for the purpose, among other things, to improve
student learning and expand learning experiences for pupils
who are identified as academically low achieving, by a school
district, a county board of education, or the State Board of
Education.
2)Exempts charter schools from many of the statutes and
regulations that apply to schools and school districts, except
where specifically noted otherwise.
3)Requires that charter schools:
a) Are nonsectarian in their programs, admission policies,
employment practices, and all other operations;
b) Not charge tuition; and
c) Not discriminate against any pupil on the basis of the
characteristics, as specified.
4)Provides that admission to a charter school may not be
determined according to the place of residence of the pupil,
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or of his or her parent or legal guardian, within the state,
except that an existing public school converting to a charter
school must adopt and maintain a policy giving admissions
preference to pupils who reside within the former attendance
area of that public school.
5)Authorizes a charter school that is unable to locate within
the jurisdiction of the authorizing school district to
establish one site outside the boundaries of the school
district, but within the same county, if the following
conditions are satisfied:
a) The school district in which the charter school proposes
to operate is notified in advance of the charter petition
approval;
b) The county superintendent of schools and the
Superintendent of Public Instruction are notified of the
location of the charter school before it commences
operations; and either of the following circumstances
exists:
i) The charter school has attempted to locate a single
site or facility to house the entire program, but a site
or facility is unavailable in the area in which the
charter school chooses to locate.
ii) The site is needed for temporary use during a
construction or expansion project.
This bill prohibits the governing board of a school district
from authorizing a new charter school to locate outside the
boundaries of the school district if the school district is
assigned a negative certification, as specified.
Background
According to the California Department of Education, there were
over 1,100 charter schools with an enrollment of approximately
514,000 pupils operating in the state in 2013-14. Parents,
teachers, or community members may initiate a charter petition,
which is typically presented to and approved by a local school
district governing board. The law also allows, under certain
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circumstances, for county boards of education and the State
Board of Education to authorize charter schools. The specific
goals for a charter school are detailed in the agreement between
the authorizing entity and the charter developer. The charter
petition is also required to include a description of the
educational program of the school and several other policies and
procedures relating to employees, pupils, and finances. Current
law establishes procedures for the renewal of charter schools,
not to exceed five years.
Charter schools are exempt from most laws governing school
districts and schools in order to allow the charter school the
flexibility to innovate and be responsive to the educational
needs of the student population served. Charter schools are
required however, to have credentialed teachers in core and
college preparatory courses, meet statewide standards, and
consult with parents, guardians, and teachers regarding the
school's programs.
Comments
Need for the bill. Existing law allows a charter school to
locate a facility in a school district other than the one it is
authorized by under a very limited number of circumstances.
However, according to the author's office, when this occurs,
school districts and charter schools often have differing
interpretations of state law, difficulty in ensuring
accountability, and lacking clear lines of communication. The
author's office indicates there have been some high-profile
cases in which cash-strapped school districts have authorized
charter schools outside of the district in order to generate
revenue through "oversight fees." While these situations have
brought more attention to this issue, there is limited
information regarding the number of charter schools located
outside the boundaries of their authorizing district. This bill
seeks to shed some light on the consequences, whether intended
or unintended, of charter schools locating outside the
boundaries of their authorizing school districts.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
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Com.:YesLocal: No
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, there would
likely be minor, if any, state costs associated prohibiting
school districts from authorizing a charter school outside
district boundaries. There are currently two school districts
with a negative budget certification for the 2015-16 fiscal year
that could potentially be impacted by this bill. The districts
affected by this bill will change annually depending on
individual district financial health.
SUPPORT: (Verified10/12/16)
Castaic Union School District (co-source)
Newhall School District (co-source)
Saugus Union School District (co-source)
Sulphur Springs School District (co-source)
William S. Hart Union High School District (co-source)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees,
AFL-CIO
Association of California School Administrators
California School Employees Association, AFL-CIO
California Teachers Association
San Diego Unified School District
OPPOSITION: (Verified10/12/16)
California Charter Schools Association
Charter Schools Development Center
GOVERNOR'S VETO MESSAGE:
I am returning Senate Bill 739 without my signature.
This bill would prohibit a school district that has a
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negative budget certification from authorizing a charter
school to operate outside of their attendance boundaries.
This bill attempts to address an issue, currently being
reviewed by the State Auditor, whereby school districts
authorize multiple charter schools outside of district
boundaries to collect oversite fees.
Let's review the audit when it's released next spring to
better determine the scope of the issue and what, if any,
policy changes are necessary.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 51-26, 8/29/16
AYES: Alejo, Arambula, Atkins, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brown,
Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,
Cooper, Dababneh, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Cristina Garcia,
Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray,
Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones-Sawyer, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, McCarty, Medina, Mullin, O'Donnell, Quirk,
Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Mark Stone,
Thurmond, Ting, Weber, Williams, Wood, Rendon
NOES: Achadjian, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Chang, Dahle,
Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Jones, Kim,
Lackey, Levine, Linder, Mathis, Mayes, Melendez, Obernolte,
Olsen, Patterson, Steinorth, Wagner, Waldron, Wilk
NO VOTE RECORDED: Brough, Daly, Nazarian
Prepared by:Lenin DelCastillo / ED. / (916) 651-4105
10/17/16 13:53:44
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