AB 1032, as amended, Gordon. Charter schools: facilities.
Existing law, the Smaller Classes, Safer Schools, and Financial Accountability Act, requires that each school district make available to each charter school operating in the school district facilities sufficient for the charter school to accommodate all of the charter school’s in-district students in conditions reasonably equivalent to those in which the students would be accommodated if they were attending other public schools of the district. Existing law provides that it is the intent of the people that public school facilities should be shared fairly among all public school pupils, including those in charter schools. Existing law authorizes a school district to charge a charter school a pro rata share of the school district facilities costs that the school district pays for with unrestrictedbegin delete general fundend deletebegin insert
General Fundend insert revenues.
This bill would require a school district to give the same degree of consideration to pupils attending schools operated by the school district as pupils attending charter schools, for purposes of determining appropriate facilities to offer to eligible charter schools. The bill would require the school district to consider certain things when allocating reasonably equivalent facilities to charter schools, including the impact of the facilities offer on pupils attending schools operated by the school district and the in-district students attending, or proposed to attend, the charter school, as provided. The bill would state that a school district is not required to provide additional facilities to a charter school if the charter school owns or leases facilities that are able to accommodate in-district students in conditions reasonably equivalent to those in which the in-district students would be accommodated if they were attending public schools of the district, as provided. By imposing new requirements on school districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 47614.1 is added to the Education Code,
2to read:
(a) Pursuant to Section 47614, in exercising its
4discretion in determining appropriate facilities to offer to eligible
5charter schools operating within a school district, a school district
6shall give the same degree of consideration to pupils attending
7schools operated by the school district as pupils attending charter
8schools. To ensure that facilities are shared fairly among all public
9school pupils, including those in charter schools, in allocating
10reasonably equivalent facilities to charter schools operating within
11the school district, a school district shall considerbegin insert both ofend insert the
12following:
13(1) The impact of the facilities offer on pupils attending schools
14operated by the school district and the in-district students attending,
15or proposed to attend, the charter school. In considering this impact,
16the school district shall dobegin insert both ofend insert the following:
P3 1(A) Seek to minimize disruption to the educational program of
2pupils attending schools operated by the school district and the
3in-district students attending, or proposed to attend, the charter
4school.
5(B) Not unnecessarily move pupils attending district schools
6from their current schools.
7(2) The useable space at the comparisonbegin delete school sitesend deletebegin insert
schoolsitesend insert
8 operated by the school district as well as all useable space at
9facilities owned or leased by the charter school when considering
10reasonably equivalent facilities to be allocated to a charter school.
11For purposes of determining conditions reasonably equivalent for
12the charter school’s in-district students, useable space shall not
13include space that cannot be used for educational purposes due to
14safety concerns, topography, lack of improvement, or other
15conditions. The school district shall also exclude from its
16considerationbegin insert classrooms, specialized classrooms, and nonteachingend insert
17 spacebegin insert at the comparison schoolsitesend insert thatbegin delete isend deletebegin insert
areend insert notbegin delete usedend deletebegin insert providedend insert
18 by the school districtbegin delete for instructional purposesend deletebegin insert to district pupils,end insert
19 andbegin insert shall excludeend insert spacebegin insert at the comparison schoolsites end insert that is used
20solely by private organizations to provide services with nonschool
21district resourcesbegin insert, when determining
conditions reasonably
22equivalent for the charter school’s in-district studentsend insert.
23(b) A school district is not required to provide additional
24facilities to a charter school if the charter school owns or leases
25facilities for the year for which it seeks allocation of facilities and
26the owned or leased facilities are able to accommodate in-district
27students in conditions reasonably equivalent to those in which the
28in-district students would be accommodated.
29(c) In evaluating a facilities request or formulating a facilities
30offer, arithmetical precision is not required. Instead, the school
31district shall use reasonable good faith methods to evaluate a
32facility request or formulate a facilities offer.
The Legislature finds and declares that Section 1 of
34this act does not change the scope or effect of, and furthers the
35purposes of, the Smaller Classes, Safer Schools, and Financial
36Accountability Act because it ensures that public school facilities
37are shared fairly among all public school pupils.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
39this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
40local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
P4 1pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
24 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
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