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S1358..........................................................by EDUCATION
CHARTER SCHOOLS - Amends existing law to delete provisions for limiting the
number of charter schools which may be approved; to delete provisions for
assigning unused allotments; and to delete duties of the State Board of
Education for numbering approved charter school petitions.
02/16 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/17 Rpt prt - to Educ
02/26 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/27 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/03 3rd rdg - PASSED - 30-5-0
AYES -- Andreason, Bailey, Brandt, Bunderson, Burkett, Burtenshaw,
Cameron, Compton(Duncan), Darrington, Davis, Gannon, Geddes, Goedde,
Hill, Ingram, Kennedy, Little, Lodge, Malepeai, McKenzie, McWilliams,
Noble(Anderson), Noh, Pearce, Richardson, Schroeder, Sorensen, Sweet,
Werk, Williams
NAYS -- Calabretta, Keough, Marley, Stegner, Stennett
Absent and excused -- None
Floor Sponsor - Andreason
Title apvd - to House
03/04 House intro - 1st rdg - to Educ
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-seventh Legislature Second Regular Session - 2004
IN THE SENATE
SENATE BILL NO. 1358
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOLS; AMENDING SECTION 33-5203, IDAHO CODE, TO
3 DELETE OBSOLETE PROVISIONS FOR LIMITING THE NUMBER OF CHARTER SCHOOLS
4 WHICH MAY BE APPROVED AND TO DELETE PROVISIONS FOR ASSIGNING UNUSED ALLOT-
5 MENTS; AND AMENDING SECTION 33-5206, IDAHO CODE, TO DELETE DUTIES OF THE
6 STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION FOR NUMBERING APPROVED CHARTER SCHOOL PETITIONS.
7 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
8 SECTION 1. That Section 33-5203, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
9 amended to read as follows:
10 33-5203. AUTHORIZATION -- LIMITATIONS. (1) The creation of public charter
11 schools is hereby authorized. Charter schools shall be part of the state's
12 program of public education.
13 (2) It is the intent of the legislature that the number of charter
14 schools which may be approved in each of the first five (5) years after the
15 effective date of this act be limited in number and geographic distribution in
16 accordance with the following:
17 (a) Not more than sixty (60) schools may be approved in the first five
18 (5) years after the effective date of this act, and
19 (b) Not more than twelve (12) schools may be approved in any one (1)
20 year, and
21 (c) Not more than two (2) charters per year may be granted within an edu-
22 cational classification region as established by the state board of educa-
23 tion, and
24 (d) Not more than one (1) charter may be granted for any one (1) school
25 district in a year, and
26 (e) No whole school district may be converted to a charter district or
27 any configuration which includes all schools as charter schools.
28 The legislature further finds that, notwithstanding the limitations of this
29 subsection (2), if fewer than twelve (12) charters are approved by June 1 of a
30 year, the unused allotments shall be assigned to a statewide pool for use by
31 other requesting districts. Distributions from the pool shall be made by ran-
32 dom drawing.
33 (3) A charter school may be formed by creating a new school or converting
34 an existing public school to charter status. No charter shall be granted under
35 this chapter which authorizes the conversion of any private or parochial
36 school to a charter school. No charter shall be granted to or operated by a
37 for-profit entity.
38 SECTION 2. That Section 33-5206, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
39 amended to read as follows:
40 33-5206. REQUIREMENTS AND PROHIBITIONS UPON APPROVAL OF A CHARTER SCHOOL.
41 (1) In addition to any other requirements imposed in this chapter, a charter
2
1 school shall be nonsectarian in its programs, affiliations, admission poli-
2 cies, employment practices, and all other operations, shall not charge
3 tuition, levy taxes or issue bonds, and shall not discriminate against any
4 student on any basis prohibited by the federal or state constitutions or any
5 federal, state or local law. Admission to a charter school shall not be deter-
6 mined according to the place of residence of the student, or of the student's
7 parent or guardian within the district, except that a new or conversion
8 charter school established under the provisions of this chapter shall adopt
9 and maintain a policy giving admission preference to students who reside
10 within the attendance area of that school.
11 (2) No board of trustees shall require any employee of the school dis-
12 trict to be involuntarily assigned to work in a charter school.
13 (3) Certified teachers in a charter school shall be considered public
14 school teachers. Educational experience shall accrue for service in a charter
15 school and such experience shall be counted by any school district to which
16 the teacher returns after employment in a charter school.
17 (4) No board of trustees shall require any student enrolled in the school
18 district to attend a charter school.
19 (5) Upon approval of the petition by the board of trustees, the peti-
20 tioner shall provide written notice of that approval, including a copy of the
21 petition, to the state board of education. For the purpose of implementing the
22 provisions of section 33-5203(2), Idaho Code, the state board of education
23 shall assign a number to each petition it receives. Petitions shall be num-
24 bered based on the chronological order in which notice of the approved peti-
25 tion is received by the state board of education.
26 (6) Each charter school shall annually submit a report to the local board
27 of trustees which approved its charter. In the case of a new charter school
28 whose charter was granted by the state board of education pursuant to section
29 33-5207, Idaho Code, the annual report shall be submitted to the state board
30 of education. The report shall contain the audit of the fiscal and
31 programmatic operations as required in section 33-5205(3)(j), Idaho Code, a
32 report on student progress based on the charter school's student educational
33 standards identified in section 33-5205(3)(b), Idaho Code, and a copy of the
34 charter school's accreditation report.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 14096
This proposal amends Idaho Code 33-5203 and 33-5206 to delete from code obsolete
provisions to limit the number of charter schools which may be approved each year in the
state, and in each region, by boards of trustees in each district, during the first five years
in which the Charter School Act was in place. The charter school act went into affect on
July 1, 1998, and that limitation is no longer applicable.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact on the state general fund.
Contact
Name: Bob West, Idaho State Department of Education
Phone: 332-6810
Name: Don Robertson, Idaho State Department of Education
Phone: 332-6812 S 1358