 Mon, Sep 08, 2008 05:05 AM
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2008-01-31  JOHNS CREEK HERALD | Charter School bill passes House; on to State Senate
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| | by Candy Waylock | |  |
February 06, 2008
A bill allowing charter school applicants to bypass local school boards and get approval directly from the state sailed through a full vote in the Georgia House of Representatives and will now be sent to the Senate for consideration.
House Bill 881, sponsored by Rep. Jan Jones, R-Milton, passed out of committee on a 22-4 vote, then became one of the first bills acted on by the full House. On the floor, the bill faced a bit more opposition, but passed easily on a 119-48 vote.
The bill creates a new path for charter schools, which typically first apply to local boards of education for approval, then to the state board of education for final approval.
Jones' bill would establish a third option - the Georgia Charter Schools Commission – for charter school applicants. The seven-member Charter Commission would have the power to approve a charter school in a local school system, without approval of the local board of education.
The kicker is the local board of education would be required to fund the charter school, passing on not just state and federal monies attached to each student, but local tax dollars as well.
Supporters of the bill said it provides parents with more options for their child's education, especially in those communities considered hostile towards charter schools. Charter schools are open enrollment, publicly funded schools that operate under a charter from the local board of education.
They are often exempt from some local and state mandates, such as class size restrictions or funding mandates. However in exchange for the freedom, a charter must maintain academic achievement at the same level, or preferably higher, than the traditional public schools in the area.
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Georgia has 71 charter schools in the state. Fulton County has nine charter schools, with the entire cluster of schools in Sandy Springs slowly converting to charter status.
Still to be determined in HB 881 is which entity has oversight of the school – the local board or the Charter Commission.
Bill weakens local boards?
Typically, the local board of education has the power to close a charter school if the school does not meet expectations set forth in the charter.
State Rep. Mike Keown declared the bill was an attempt to do an "end run" around local boards that are elected and constitutionally charged to do a job, just as legislators are. In reference to the poor opinions many legislators often express about local boards, he told his fellow representatives, "Some feel the same way about us."
Local school boards and the state PTA members also questioned whether a state commission has the constitutional right to open a school in a county without the approval of the elected board of education, then mandate local tax dollars help fund the school.
During a media symposium last week, two key legislators assured reporters the Georgia Board of Education would still have the power to deny a charter school, even if the Charter Commission approved the petition.
What they failed to mention was that it would take a "super majority" – or two thirds of the votes from the GBOE members – to overturn the decision. That's a near impossible feat given the partisan makeup of the state board.
Demos pledge more school funding
The Democratic leadership in the Georgia Legislature wants the state to put its money where its mouth is, by backing a plan to increased education funding. During a press conference last week, Democratic legislators proposed to take $300 million from the state's $1.6 billion reserves over the next two years and distribute it to local school systems as a way to roll back their millage rates without losing revenue.
Legislators estimate the $600 million would provide about $187 per student each year.
Democratic leaders also called for the state to amend the current education funding formula QBE (Quality Based Education) to be a fixed mandate, and not dependent upon appropriations each year.
That would take away the state's ability to reduce the funding formula each year, such as through the "temporary" austerity cuts in place over the past six years.
Whether the issue will move beyond the press conference is dubious, since Republicans control both chambers of the state Legislature, and thus the purse strings.
- www.northfulton.com
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