BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1317|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1317
Author: Huff (R)
Amended: 5/7/14
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/30/14
AYES: Liu, Wyland, Block, Correa, Galgiani, Hancock, Hueso,
Huff, Monning
SUBJECT : Charter schools
SOURCE : California Charter Schools Association
DIGEST : This bill requires that charter schools be subject to
a variety of the same open meeting, conflict of interest and
disclosure laws as school districts, including the Ralph M.
Brown Act (Brown Act), the California Public Records Act (CPRA),
and the Political Reform Act of 1974 (PRA).
ANALYSIS : Existing law, the Charter Schools Act of 1992,
provides for the establishment of charter schools in California
for the purpose, among other things, of improving student
learning and expanding learning experiences for pupils who are
identified as academically low achieving. Existing law declares
that charter schools are part of the public school system as
defined in the California Constitution and are "under the
exclusive control of the officers of the public schools." A
charter school is required to comply with statutes governing
charter schools and all of the provisions set forth in its
charter, but is otherwise exempt from most laws governing school
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districts except where specifically noted.
Existing law requires state and local agencies to conduct
business in meetings that are open to the public:
The Brown Act requires meetings of a local agency's board of
directors to be open to the public.
The Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act requires meetings of state
bodies to be open to the public.
The CPRA declares that the public has a right to access
information that concerns the people's business and provides
that public records shall be available for inspection, except as
provided by an express provision of law.
Existing law prohibits members of the Legislature, state,
county, district, judicial district, and city officers or
employees from being financially interested in any contract made
by them in their official capacity, or by any body or board of
which they are members.
The PRA, established by the voters through Proposition 9 in June
1974, requires public officials to carry out their duties in an
unbiased manner, free from influence by outside interests, and
to follow regulations during elections, as defined. The PRA
also requires government agencies to adopt a conflict of
interest code that requires designated employees of the agency
to file an annual statement of economic interest disclosing any
investments, business positions, interests in real property, or
sources of income that may be affected materially by a decision
made, or participated in, by the designated employee by virtue
of his/her position.
This bill:
1.With respect to the operation of a charter school, provides
that the governing body of a charter school is subject to all
of the following:
A. The Ralph M. Brown Act, except that a charter school
operated by an entity governed by the Bagley-Keene Open
Meeting Act is subject to the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act
regardless of the authorizing entity.
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B. The CPRA.
C. Provisions of the Government Code that prohibit
government officers or employees from being financially
interested in contracts or purchases made by them in their
official capacity, unless the charter school is operated
as, or is operated by, a nonprofit public benefit
corporation.
D. Provides that a charter school is considered an agency
and the Fair Political Practices Commission is the charter
school's code reviewing body.
E. Prohibits a member of the governing body of a charter
school from providing a loan to the charter school or sign
a guarantor agreement relative to a line of credit for the
charter school unless all of the following are satisfied:
(1) The governing body of the charter school adopts a
resolution at a public meeting declaring and describing
the need for the loan or the line of credit.
(2) The governing body of the charter school discloses
and approves the loan agreement or line of credit,
including the terms of the loan or the line of credit,
during a public meeting.
(3) The member of the governing body of the charter
school abstains from voting on, or influencing or
attempting to influence another member of the governing
body regarding, all matters affecting the loan agreement
or the line of credit.
A. Prohibits a member of the governing body of a charter
school from leasing real property or signing a guarantor
agreement relative to a lease of real property to be
occupied by a charter school unless:
(1) The governing body of the charter school discloses
and approves the real property lease agreement, including
the terms of the lease and the guaranty, if applicable,
during a public meeting.
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(2) The member of the governing body of the charter
school who is a lessor or guarantor of the real property
to be occupied by the charter school abstains from voting
on, or influencing or attempting to influence another
member of the governing body of the charter school
regarding, all matters affecting the real property lease
agreement.
A. Provides that a violation of #E or #F described above
constitutes grounds for charter revocation.
B. Requires a member of the governing body of a charter
school to abstain from voting on, or influencing or
attempting to influence another member of the governing
body of the charter school regarding, personnel matters
that uniquely affect a relative of the member but may vote
on collective bargaining agreements and personnel matters
that affect a class of employees to which the relative
belongs, as specified.
C. Prohibits a person who is disqualified by the California
Constitution from holding a civil office from serving on
the governing body of a charter school.
D. Specifies that the governing board of a charter school
is not subject to open meeting laws or the CPRA when
conducting activities unrelated to the school's operation
and prohibits the discussion of unrelated activities in
meetings held to discuss operation of the charter school.
E. Authorizes the governing body of a charter school to
meet within the physical boundaries of the state if all of
the following are specified:
(1) Proper notices, as specified, are posted at all
charter school facilities.
(2) A teleconference location is available in at least
one charter school facility within the physical
boundaries of each county in which any of the charter
school's facilities are located.
(3) The meeting location complies with the open, public,
and accessibility requirements, as specified.
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A. Provides that a charter school may meet in a county
contiguous to the county where one or more of the school's
facilities are located if at least 10% of the pupils who
are enrolled in the school reside in that contiguous
county. A nonclassroom-based charter school that does not
have a facility may meet within the boundaries of the
county in which the greatest number of pupils who are
enrolled in the school reside, as specified.
B. Provides that the PRA and the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting
Act shall not apply to committees of the charter school,
unless a committee is comprised of a majority of the
members of the governing body of the charter school.
C. Authorizes the governing body of a charter school to
hold closed sessions to consider matters regarding pupil
discipline.
D. Provides that a statement of economic interest that is
filed by a designated person at a charter school after the
required deadline pursuant to the PRA shall not be the sole
basis for revocation of a charter.
E. Requires a charter school, within twenty days upon a
request for a copy of records, as specified, to determine
whether the request seeks copies of disclosable public
records in possession of the charter school and promptly
notify the person making the request of the that
determination.
F. Provides that a charter school may require payment of
actual costs from the person making the request before
producing the records.
G. Provides that the governing board of a school district,
county board of education, or the State Board of Education
will not impose any requirements that are inconsistent
with, or in addition to, the bill's provisions, as
specified.
H. Provides that the bill's provisions shall not apply to
actions taken before the operative date of these
provisions.
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2. Provides that the provisions of this bill, as specified,
shall become operative on July 1, 2015.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local:
No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/9/14)
California Charter Schools Association (source)
OPPOSITION : (Verified 5/9/14)
California Teachers Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author:
Many leaders in the education community, including the charter
school movement, agree that a robust and clear conflict of
interest law is in the best interest of the individual charter
school, the charter school movement and the public. In the
past, stakeholders have come close to a comprehensive array of
governance and conflict of interest revisions that ensure
transparency on the part of the charter school while recognizing
the unique characteristics of the charter school.
SB 1317 lays out in detail a comprehensive package of revisions
that achieve the right balance of public transparency and
sensitivity to the singular needs of a charter school.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : Opponents argue that this bill
provides for a number of exceptions to the Brown Act and the
Public Records Act for charter schools. Further, this proposal
allows charter schools that are operated as or by a non-profit
corporation to be out-of-compliance with Government Code 1090.
This bill allows charter school governing boards to provide a
loan to or lease property to the school they are governing with
no limits on profit as long as the contracts were approved in
public meetings. Finally, this bill prohibits a charter school
revocation based on filing statements of economic interest under
the Political Reform Act.
PQ:ne 5/9/14 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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