BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1811
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Date of Hearing: May 2, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 1811 (Bonilla) - As Amended: April 10, 2012
Policy Committee: Education
Vote:7-3
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill, commencing with the 2013-14 fiscal year (FY),
requires the general purpose funding of a conversion charter
school in a unified school district, to be based on the amount
per unit of average daily attendance (ADA) allocated in the
prior year, adjusted for inflation, deficit reduction, and any
other state general purpose increases or decreases, as
specified. This bill also:
Exempts a conversion charter school established on or after
January 1, 2010 and before December 31, 2012 from this bill's
requirements. Further specifies nothing in this measure
precludes a charter school or unified school district from
agreeing to an alternative funding formula.
FISCAL EFFECT
Indeterminate potential GF/98 general purpose savings, likely in
the thousands, to unified school districts with conversion
charter schools, as specified. Actual costs will depend on the
number of conversion charter schools located in unified school
districts. There were 334 unified school districts in the state
in 2010-11.
COMMENTS
1)Background . A charter school is a public school that may
provide instruction in any of grades K-12. It is usually
created or organized by a group of teachers, parents and
community leaders or a community-based organization. A charter
school may be authorized by an existing local public school
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board, county board of education, or the State Board of
Education. Specific goals and operating procedures for the
charter school are detailed in an agreement (charter) between
the sponsoring board and charter organizers. A charter school
is generally exempt from most laws governing school districts,
except where specifically noted in the law.
According to the Legislative Analyst Office report entitled:
Comparing Funding for Charter Schools and Their School
District Peers (January 2012), "Both charter schools and
school districts receive base per-pupil funding that can be
used for any educational purpose. This funding is primarily
used for the general operating costs associated with schools,
such as salaries and benefits for teachers, administrators,
aides, and other school support staff. This is the largest
funding source for both school types. Despite these
similarities, differences exist in how charter school and
school district rates are determined. School district rates
are unique to each district based on historical factors. In
contrast, charter schools all receive the same per-pupil
general purpose rate based on school districts' statewide
averages in four grade spans: K-3, 4-6, 7-8, and 9-12. Charter
school rates range from $5,077 for schools with students in
kindergarten through third grade to $6,148 for charter high
schools."
SB 319 (Migden), Chapter 355, Statutes of 2005, established an
alternative method for calculating revenue limit funding
(general purpose) for conversion charter schools in a unified
school district. Specifically, Chapter 355 requires a
conversion charter school in a unified school district to
receive the same funding it did in the prior year (when the
school was a "regular public school" in a unified school
district), with adjustments as specified. Likewise, SB 319
requires the unified school district to certify this funding
formula and it becomes the basis for the charter school's per
pupil revenue limit funding in future years.
2)Purpose . A consequence of the SB 319 funding formula is there
is not a mechanism to apply any budget reductions to the
calculation because the charter school receives the same
funding it did in the prior year. According to the author,
"Existing law provides school districts ADA funding based on
grade level. Funding rates reflect the cost of providing
educational services at each grade level. For example, the
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rate for high schools is higher than for elementary schools.
This funding differential creates a fiscal burden on a unified
district, when a high school converts because the converted
charter high school is entitled to the higher high school
funding rate. Unified districts are required to make up the
difference."
The author provided the following example to the committee in
support of this bill:
The Contra Costa County Board of Education recently approved
the conversion of Clayton Valley High School (CVHS) as a
charter high school. Mt. Diablo Unified School District
receives the unified district rate of $5,207 per student;
however, CVHS is entitled to and will receive the statewide
average funding rate for high school districts, which is
$6,148. The difference of $941, between the unified rate and
the high school rate, would come directly from Mt. Diablo's
budget and from the funds received for the other students in
the district."
This bill requires a conversion charter school in a unified
school district to receive its general purpose funding based
on the amount it received in the prior year.
3)Opposition . The California Association of Charter Schools
Advocates (CACSA) argues: "Under this bill, a conversion
charter high school is likely to receive a rate that is
substantially lower than the statewide charter high school
rate that it would otherwise receive. A charter school
typically has additional expenses that are not calculated in a
blended unified rate; most notable and substantial are
facility expenses that at best are only partially covered by
the state and are otherwise paid for out of its ADA."
4)Limiting the scope of the bill ? This measure was heard in the
Assembly Education Committee on March 28, 2012 and the author
agreed to amendments. The amendments were to limit the bill
to conversion charter high schools in a unified school
district. Currently, the bill applies to all conversation
charter schools. The author and Assembly Education Committee
staff concur the bill should only apply to conversion charter
high schools as such, the bill will be amended to reflect
this.
AB 1811
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Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081