Assembly Bill A10211

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Provides for submission of applications of charter schools to be made to the board of education of the local school district and to the chancellor, where appropriate

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
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Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 11, 2010	referred to education

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2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Senate Version of this Bill:: S1473
Current Committee:: Assembly Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§2851, 2852 & 2853, Ed L

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides for submission of applications of charter schools to be made to the board of education of the local school district and to the chancellor, where appropriate.

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                BILL NUMBER:A10211

TITLE  OF  BILL:    An  act  to  amend the education law, in relation to
approval of applications of charter schools

PURPOSE:  To require approval of a charter school  by  the  district  of
location.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:  Section one amends §2851(2) of the Education Law
to  add  a  new  subdivision (y) requiring the school district where the
charter school is located be included in charter school applications.

Section two amends §2851(3) of the Education Law to specify that  appli-
cations  to establish charter schools be submitted not only to the char-
tering entity, but also to the Board of Education or in New  York  City,
to  the Chancellor for approval. Amends §2851(4) of the Education Law to
clarify that charters issued prior to April 1, 2008 can be renewed sole-
ly through the charter entity which originally approved the charter.

Section three amends §2852(1) of the Education Law.  Requires  a  school
board of the district of location or the Chancellor to approve a charter
application  before  a  charter  entity can act on it. Requires a school
district to act on a charter school application that is  received  prior
to  July  1st on or before October 1st. Requires the school board or the
Chancellor to forward, within 7 days of approving a charter application,
the application to the appropriate charter entity and a  specified  form

stating  that  the  school  board or Chancellor has acted to approve the
charter application. Requires that the denial of an application  be  put
in  writing  and  include  the reasons for denial. Also, states that the
denial is final. Amends §2852(3) of the Education Law  to  require  that
modifications or supplements to a charter school application be approved
by the school board of the district of location or the Chancellor before
a  charter  entity  can  act  on  the charter school application. Amends
§2852(7) of the Education Law to require that a revision  of  a  charter
has  to  be  approved by the school board of the district of location or
the Chancellor, in addition to the  charter  entity  and  the  board  of
regents.

Section  four  amends  §2853(2)  of the Education Law to give the school
board of the district of location and Chancellor oversight over  charter
schools.  Currently,  only  the  Board of Regents and the charter entity
have oversight over charter schools.

EXISTING LAW:  Under the current charter school construct, the board  of
education  of the school district where the charter school is located or
the Chancellor is given virtually  no  say  in  the  establishment,  the
renewal,  or  the  continued oversight of the charter school.  Neverthe-
less, the school district is required to pay  directly  to  the  charter
school  for  each student enrolled in the charter school an amount equal
to 100% of the "expense per pupil".

JUSTIFICATION:  The per capita costs associated with the education of  a
child  in a particular public school (exclusive of building aid) follows
that child to the charter school (also, by definition, a public school).
The "sending" public school must still contend with virtually all of the
same  costs  --  e.g.,  salaries  of  its employees, benefits (including
health and pension costs), bond indebtedness, etc. Rarely, if ever, does
the departure of one or several students afford any cost savings to  the
"sending"  school.  Nonetheless, a distinction can be made between inde-
pendent and dependent school districts. The latter not having  an  inde-
pendently elected school board authorized to raise its own revenues, and
the former, the overwhelmingly prevalent means of school district gover-
nance  having  that  ability.  Unlike  independent school districts, the
local governing authority of a dependent school district (the mayor  and
the  city  council)  may  choose  to  provide revenue to support charter
schools.

Competition should be welcomed in  virtually  all  endeavors,  including
education.  Charter  schools  encourage innovative ideas that can poten-
tially improve the quality of education. Nevertheless, given the  fiscal
implications  of  charter  schools  on  the  district  of  location, the
district must be given the authority to approve an  initial  application
and  then;  renew  the  charter. The district should also have continued
oversight of the charter school. Of the 42  states  which  have  charter
schools, 18 require local school district approval.

School districts, like Albany and Buffalo, have seen a tremendous growth
in  resident student enrollment in charter schools. The aim of this bill
is to provide much needed relief to districts that have seen  a  signif-
icant  drain  in  financial  resources  due  to  charter  school tuition
payments.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: None

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect immediately.

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  10211

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                             March 11, 2010
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M. of A. KOON -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Education

AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to approval  of  applica-
  tions of charter schools

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section  2851  of  the  education  law  is
amended by adding a new paragraph (y) to read as follows:
  (Y)  THE  PUBLIC  SCHOOL  DISTRICT  WHERE  THE CHARTER SCHOOL IS TO BE
LOCATED.
  S 2. Subdivisions 3 and 4 of section 2851 of  the  education  law,  as
added  by  chapter 4 of the laws of 1998, paragraph (a) of subdivision 3
as amended by section 6 of part B of chapter 57 of the laws of 2008, are
amended to read as follows:
  3. An applicant shall submit the  application  to  [a]  THE  BOARD  OF
EDUCATION  OF  THE  SCHOOL DISTRICT AND IN A CITY HAVING A POPULATION OF
ONE MILLION OR MORE TO THE CHANCELLOR, WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL WILL  BE
LOCATED  AND THE charter entity for approval. For purposes of this arti-
cle, a charter entity shall be:
  (a) The board of education of a school district eligible for an appor-
tionment of aid under subdivision four of section thirty-six hundred two
of this chapter, provided that a board of education shall not approve an
application for a school to be operated outside  the  school  district's
geographic boundaries and further provided that in a city having a popu-
lation  of  one  million or more, the chancellor of any such city school
district shall be the charter entity established by this paragraph;
  (b) The board of trustees of the state university of New York; or
  (c) The board of regents.
  The board of regents shall be the only entity authorized  to  issue  a
charter  pursuant to this article. Notwithstanding any provision of this
subdivision to the contrary, an application for  the  conversion  of  an
existing  public  school  to a charter school shall be submitted to, and
may only be approved by, the charter entity set forth in  paragraph  (a)
of  this  subdivision.  Any  such  application  for  conversion shall be

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                           LBD07267-01-9

A. 10211                            2

consistent with this section, and the charter entity shall require  that
the  parents or guardians of a majority of the students then enrolled in
the existing public school vote in favor of converting the school  to  a
charter school.
  4. Charters WHICH ARE ISSUED PRIOR TO APRIL FIRST, TWO THOUSAND EIGHT,
may  be renewed, upon application, for a term of up to five years BY THE
CHARTER ENTITY WHICH ORIGINALLY APPROVED THE CHARTER.   CHARTERS  ISSUED
AFTER  APRIL  FIRST,  TWO THOUSAND EIGHT MAY BE RENEWED UPON APPLICATION
FOR A TERM OF UP TO FIVE YEARS in accordance with the provisions of this
article for the issuance of such charters pursuant  to  section  twenty-
eight hundred fifty-two of this article; provided, however, that [a] ALL
renewal [application] APPLICATIONS shall include:
  (a)  A  report  of the progress of the charter school in achieving the
educational objectives set forth in the charter.
  (b) A detailed financial statement that discloses the cost of adminis-
tration, instruction and  other  spending  categories  for  the  charter
school that will allow a comparison of such costs to other schools, both
public  and private. Such statement shall be in a form prescribed by the
board of regents.
  (c) Copies of each  of  the  annual  reports  of  the  charter  school
required  by subdivision two of section twenty-eight hundred fifty-seven
of this article, including the  charter  school  report  cards  and  the
certified financial statements.
  (d) Indications of parent and student satisfaction.
Such  renewal  application  shall  be submitted to the charter entity no
later than six months prior to the expiration of the charter;  provided,
however,  that the charter entity may waive such deadline for good cause
shown.
  S 3. Subdivisions 1, 3 and 7 of section 2852  of  the  education  law,
subdivisions 1 and 7 as amended by section 2 of part D2 of chapter 57 of
the  laws of 2007 and subdivision 3 as added by chapter 4 of the laws of
1998, are amended to read as follows:
  1. A CHARTER ENTITY SHALL NOT ACT ON AN APPLICATION UNLESS THE  SCHOOL
BOARD  OF  THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL IS TO BE LOCATED
HAS VOTED AND APPROVED THE CHARTER APPLICATION. IN A CITY OF  MORE  THAN
ONE  MILLION  INHABITANTS,  THE  CHANCELLOR  SHALL  ACT  AS THE APPROVAL
AUTHORITY FOR ANY CHARTER APPLICATIONS TO BE LOCATED  WITHIN  SUCH  CITY
BEFORE  A  CHARTER  ENTITY  SHALL  ACT  ON  THE APPLICATION. EACH SCHOOL
DISTRICT THAT RECEIVES AN APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF A  CHARTER  SCHOOL
SHALL  ACT  ON  EACH  REQUEST RECEIVED PRIOR TO JULY FIRST OF A CALENDAR
YEAR ON OR BEFORE OCTOBER FIRST OF THAT CALENDAR YEAR. WITHIN SEVEN DAYS
OF APPROVING A CHARTER APPLICATION,  THE  SCHOOL  BOARD,  OR  CHANCELLOR
WHERE  APPROPRIATE,  SHALL  FORWARD  THE  APPLICATION TO THE APPROPRIATE
CHARTER ENTITY ALONG WITH A FORM TO BE  DEVELOPED  BY  THE  COMMISSIONER
WHICH STATES THAT THE SCHOOL BOARD, OR THE CHANCELLOR WHERE APPROPRIATE,
HAS  ACTED TO APPROVE THE CHARTER APPLICATION. THE DENIAL OF AN APPLICA-
TION FOR A CHARTER SCHOOL BY A SCHOOL BOARD OR CHANCELLOR  WHERE  APPRO-
PRIATE  SHALL  BE IN WRITING AND SHALL STATE THE REASONS FOR THE DENIAL.
NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW TO THE  CONTRARY,  SUCH  DENIAL  IS
FINAL  AND SHALL NOT BE REVIEWABLE IN ANY COURT OR BY ANY ADMINISTRATIVE
BODY. A charter entity that receives an application [for approval] of  a
charter  school  WHICH HAS BEEN APPROVED BY A SCHOOL BOARD OR CHANCELLOR
shall act on each [request] CHARTER SCHOOL APPLICATION received  FROM  A
SCHOOL  BOARD OR CHANCELLOR prior to July first of a calendar year on or
before January first of the succeeding calendar  year,  and  a  proposed
charter between the applicant and the charter entity resulting from such

A. 10211                            3

application AND SCHOOL BOARD OR CHANCELLOR APPROVAL shall be executed on
or  before  February  first  of  such succeeding year.   Nothing in this
subdivision shall be construed to prevent a charter entity from  receiv-
ing  or acting upon an application at any time PROVIDED THAT SUCH APPLI-
CATION MUST HAVE THE APPROVAL OF THE SCHOOL BOARD, OR  CHANCELLOR  WHERE
APPROPRIATE, WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL IS TO BE LOCATED.
  3.  A  charter  entity  is  not  required to approve a charter and may
require an applicant to modify or supplement an application as a  condi-
tion  of  approval.    ANY  MODIFICATION  OR  SUPPLEMENT  SHALL FIRST BE
APPROVED BY THE SCHOOL BOARD, OR CHANCELLOR WHERE APPROPRIATE, BEFORE  A
CHARTER  ENTITY  MAY  ACT ON THE CHARTER SCHOOL APPLICATION. An existing
private school shall not be eligible to convert to a charter school.  In
determining  whether an application involves the conversion of an exist-
ing private school, the charter entity and the board  of  regents  shall
consider  such factors as: (a) whether the charter school would have the
same or substantially the same board of trustees and/or officers  as  an
existing private school; (b) whether a substantial proportion of employ-
ees  of  the  charter  school  would be drawn from such existing private
school; (c) whether a substantial portion of the assets and property  of
such existing private school would be transferred to the charter school;
(d) whether the charter school would be located at the same site as such
existing  private  school;  (e)  upon renewal only, whether such private
school closed within one year of establishment of  the  charter  school;
and  (f) upon renewal only, whether a substantial portion of the charter
school's students were drawn from such existing private school.
  7. (a) A revision of a charter shall be made only upon the approval of
the SCHOOL BOARD OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL  IS  TO
BE  LOCATED, OR THE CHANCELLOR WHERE APPROPRIATE, charter entity and the
board of regents in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  subdivisions
five-a and five-b of this section.
  (b)  When a revision of a charter involves the relocation of a charter
school to a different school district, the proposed new school  district
shall  be  given  at  least forty-five days notice of the proposed relo-
cation. In addition, the applicant shall  provide  an  analysis  of  the
community  support for such relocation and of the projected programmatic
and fiscal impact of the charter  school  on  the  proposed  new  school
district of location and other public and nonpublic schools in the area.
  S  4.  Subdivision 2 of section 2853 of the education law, as added by
chapter 4 of the laws of 1998, is amended to read as follows:
  2. The board of regents, THE SCHOOL BOARD OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WHERE
THE CHARTER SCHOOL IS TO BE LOCATED, and charter  entity  shall  oversee
each  school  approved  by  such entity, and may visit, examine into and
inspect any charter school, including the records of such school,  under
its  oversight.  Oversight  by a charter entity and the board of regents
shall be sufficient to ensure that the charter school is  in  compliance
with all applicable laws, regulations and charter provisions.
  S 5. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Assembly Bill A10211

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

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2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Details

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

KOON

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee

Actions

co-Sponsors

Joan Christensen

Ginny Fields

John McEneny

multi-Sponsors

Robert Reilly

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Details

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2009-A10211 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments