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S1049..........................................................by SCHROEDER
CHARTER SCHOOLS - Amends existing law relating to charter schools to
provide that charter schools shall be organized as general business
corporations.
01/21 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
01/24 Rpt prt - to Educ
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-eighth Legislature First Regular Session - 2005
IN THE SENATE
SENATE BILL NO. 1049
BY SCHROEDER
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO CHARTER SCHOOLS; AMENDING SECTION 33-5204, IDAHO CODE, TO PROVIDE
3 THAT CHARTER SCHOOLS SHALL BE ORGANIZED AS GENERAL BUSINESS CORPORATIONS;
4 AND AMENDING SECTION 33-5205, IDAHO CODE, TO ELIMINATE A REFERENCE TO NON-
5 PROFIT CORPORATIONS.
6 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
7 SECTION 1. That Section 33-5204, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
8 amended to read as follows:
9 33-5204. NONPROFIT GENERAL BUSINESS CORPORATION -- LIABILITY -- INSUR-
10 ANCE. (1) A public charter school shall be organized and managed under the
11 Idaho nonprofit general business corporation act. The board of directors of a
12 public charter school shall be deemed public agents authorized by a public
13 school district or the state board of education to control the public charter
14 school, but shall function independently of any school board of trustees in
15 any school district in which the public charter school is located, except as
16 provided in the charter. For the purposes of section 59-1302(15), Idaho Code,
17 a public charter school created pursuant to this chapter shall be deemed a
18 governmental entity. Pursuant to the provisions of section 63-3622O, Idaho
19 Code, sales to or purchases by a public charter school are exempt from payment
20 of the sales and use tax. A public charter school and the board of directors
21 of a public charter school are subject to the provisions of:
22 (a) Sections 18-1351 through 18-1362, Idaho Code, on bribery and corrupt
23 influence;
24 (b) Chapter 2, title 59, Idaho Code, on prohibitions against contracts
25 with officers;
26 (c) Chapter 7, title 59, Idaho Code, on ethics in government;
27 (d) Chapter 23, title 67, Idaho Code, on open public meetings; and
28 (e) Chapter 3, title 9, Idaho Code, on disclosure of public records
29 in the same manner that a traditional public school and the board of school
30 trustees of a school district are subject to those provisions.
31 (2) A public charter school may sue or be sued, purchase, receive, hold
32 and convey real and personal property for school purposes, and borrow money
33 for such purposes, to the same extent and on the same conditions as a tradi-
34 tional public school district, and its employees, directors and officers shall
35 enjoy the same immunities as employees, directors and officers of traditional
36 public school districts and other public schools, including those provided by
37 chapter 9, title 6, Idaho Code. The authorized chartering entity that grants a
38 public school charter shall have no liability for the acts, omissions, debts
39 or other obligations of a public charter school, except as may be provided in
40 the charter. A local public school district shall have no liability for the
41 acts, omissions, debts or other obligations of a public charter school located
42 in its district that has been approved by an authorized chartering entity
43 other than the board of trustees of the local school district.
2
1 (3) Nothing in this chapter shall prevent the board of directors of a
2 public charter school, operating as a nonprofit corporation, from borrowing
3 money to finance the purchase or lease of school building facilities, equip-
4 ment and furnishings of those school building facilities. Subject to the terms
5 of a contractual agreement between the board and a lender, nothing herein
6 shall prevent the board from using the facility, its equipment and furnish-
7 ings, as collateral for the loan.
8 (4) Public charter schools shall secure insurance for liability and prop-
9 erty loss.
10 (5) It shall be unlawful for:
11 (a) Any director to have pecuniary interest directly or indirectly in any
12 contract or other transaction pertaining to the maintenance or conduct of
13 the authorized chartering entity and charter, or to accept any reward or
14 compensation for services rendered as a director except as may be other-
15 wise provided in this subsection (5). The board of directors of a public
16 charter school may accept and award contracts involving the public charter
17 school to businesses in which the director or a person related to him by
18 blood or marriage within the second degree has a direct or indirect inter-
19 est, provided that the procedures set forth in section 18-1361 or
20 18-1361A, Idaho Code, are followed. The receiving, soliciting or accep-
21 tance of moneys of a public charter school for deposit in any bank or
22 trust company, or the lending of moneys by any bank or trust company to
23 any public charter school, shall not be deemed to be a contract pertaining
24 to the maintenance or conduct of a public charter school and authorized
25 chartering entity within the meaning of this section; nor shall the pay-
26 ment by any public charter school board of directors of compensation to
27 any bank or trust company for services rendered in the transaction of any
28 banking business with such public charter school board of directors be
29 deemed the payment of any reward or compensation to any officer or direc-
30 tor of any such bank or trust company within the meaning of this section.
31 (b) The board of directors of any public charter school to enter into or
32 execute any contract with the spouse of any member of such board, the
33 terms of which said contract require, or will require, the payment or
34 delivery of any public charter school funds, moneys or property to such
35 spouse, except as provided in section 18-1361 or 18-1361A, Idaho Code.
36 (6) When any relative of any director or relative of the spouse of a
37 director related by affinity or consanguinity within the second degree is to
38 be considered for employment in a public charter school, such director shall
39 abstain from voting in the election of such relative, and shall be absent from
40 the meeting while such employment is being considered and determined.
41 SECTION 2. That Section 33-5205, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
42 amended to read as follows:
43 33-5205. PETITION TO ESTABLISH PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL. (1) Any group of
44 persons may petition to establish a new public charter school, or to convert
45 an existing traditional public school to a public charter school.
46 (a) A petition to establish a new public charter school, including a pub-
47 lic virtual charter school, shall be signed by not fewer than thirty (30)
48 qualified electors of the service area designated in the petition, and
49 shall first be submitted to the local board of trustees in which the pub-
50 lic charter school will be located. The board of trustees may either: (i)
51 consider the petition and approve the charter; or (ii) consider the peti-
52 tion and reject the charter; or (iii) refer the petition to the public
53 charter school commission. If the petitioners and the local board of
3
1 trustees have not reached mutual agreement on the provisions of the
2 charter, after a reasonable and good faith effort, within thirty (30) days
3 from the date of the submission of the charter petition, the petitioners
4 may withdraw their petition from the local board of trustees and may sub-
5 mit their charter petition to the public charter school commission.
6 (b) A petition to convert an existing traditional public school shall be
7 submitted to the board of trustees of the district in which the school is
8 located for review and approval. The petition shall be signed by not fewer
9 than sixty percent (60%) of the teachers currently employed by the school
10 district at the school to be converted, and by one (1) or more parents or
11 guardians of not fewer than sixty percent (60%) of the students currently
12 attending the school to be converted. Each petition submitted to convert
13 an existing school or to establish a new charter school shall contain a
14 copy of the articles of incorporation and the bylaws of the nonprofit cor-
15 poration, which shall be deemed incorporated into the petition.
16 (2) Not later than thirty (30) days after receiving a petition signed in
17 accordance with the specifications in subsection (1) of this section, the
18 authorized chartering entity shall hold a meeting open to the public for the
19 purpose of discussing the provisions of the charter, at which time the autho-
20 rized chartering entity shall consider the merits of the petition and the
21 level of employee and parental support for the petition. In the case of a
22 petition submitted to the public charter school commission, the public hearing
23 shall also include any oral or written comments that an authorized representa-
24 tive of the school district in which the proposed public charter school would
25 be physically located may provide regarding the merits of the petition and any
26 potential impacts on the school district. Following review of the petition and
27 the public hearing, the authorized chartering entity shall either grant or
28 deny the charter within sixty (60) days of receipt of the petition, provided
29 however, that the date may be extended by an additional sixty (60) days if the
30 petition fails to contain the requisite signatures or fails to contain all of
31 the information required in this section, or if both parties agree to the
32 extension.
33 (3) An authorized chartering entity may grant a charter under the provi-
34 sions of this chapter only if it determines that the petition contains the
35 requisite signatures, the information required by subsection (4) of this sec-
36 tion, and additional statements describing all of the following:
37 (a) The proposed educational program of the public charter school,
38 designed among other things, to identify what it means to be an "educated
39 person" in the twenty-first century, and how learning best occurs. The
40 goals identified in the program shall include how all educational thor-
41 oughness standards as defined in section 33-1612, Idaho Code, shall be
42 fulfilled.
43 (b) The measurable student educational standards identified for use by
44 the public charter school. "Student educational standards" for the purpose
45 of this chapter means the extent to which all students of the public
46 charter school demonstrate they have attained the skills and knowledge
47 specified as goals in the school's educational program.
48 (c) The method by which student progress in meeting those student educa-
49 tional standards is to be measured.
50 (d) A provision by which students of the public charter school will be
51 tested with the same standardized tests as other Idaho public school stu-
52 dents.
53 (e) A provision which ensures that the public charter school shall be
54 state accredited as provided by rule of the state board of education.
55 (f) The governance structure of the public charter school including, but
4
1 not limited to, the person or entity who shall be legally accountable for
2 the operation of the public charter school, and the process to be followed
3 by the public charter school to ensure parental involvement.
4 (g) The qualifications to be met by individuals employed by the public
5 charter school. Instructional staff shall be certified teachers, or may
6 apply for a waiver or any of the limited certification options as provided
7 by rule of the state board of education.
8 (h) The procedures that the public charter school will follow to ensure
9 the health and safety of students and staff.
10 (i) Admission procedures, including provision for overenrollment. Such
11 admission procedures shall provide that the initial admission procedures
12 for a new public charter school, including provision for overenrollment,
13 will be determined by lottery or other random method, except as otherwise
14 provided herein. If initial capacity is insufficient to enroll all pupils
15 who submit a timely application, then the admission procedures may provide
16 that preference shall be given in the following order: first, to children
17 of founders, provided that this admission preference shall be limited to
18 not more than ten percent (10%) of the capacity of the public charter
19 school; second, to siblings of pupils already selected by the lottery or
20 other random method; and third, an equitable selection process such as by
21 lottery or other random method. If capacity is insufficient to enroll all
22 pupils for subsequent school terms, who submit a timely application, then
23 the admission procedures may provide that preference shall be given in the
24 following order: first, to pupils returning to the public charter school
25 in the second or any subsequent year of its operation; second, to children
26 of founders, provided that this admission preference shall be limited to
27 not more than ten percent (10%) of the capacity of the public charter
28 school; third, to siblings of pupils already enrolled in the public
29 charter school; and fourth, an equitable selection process such as by lot-
30 tery or other random method. There shall be no carryover from year to year
31 of the list maintained to fill vacancies. A new lottery shall be conducted
32 each year to fill vacancies which become available.
33 (j) The manner in which an annual audit of the financial and programmatic
34 operations of the public charter school is to be conducted.
35 (k) The disciplinary procedures that the public charter school will uti-
36 lize, including the procedure by which students may be suspended, expelled
37 and reenrolled.
38 (l) A provision which ensures that all staff members of the public
39 charter school will be covered by the public employee retirement system,
40 federal social security, unemployment insurance and worker's compensation
41 insurance.
42 (m) The public school attendance alternative for students residing within
43 the school district who choose not to attend the public charter school.
44 (n) A description of the transfer rights of any employee choosing to work
45 in a public charter school and the rights of such employees to return to
46 any noncharter school in the school district after employment at a public
47 charter school.
48 (o) A provision which ensures that the staff of the public charter school
49 shall be considered a separate unit for purposes of collective bargaining.
50 (p) The procedures to be followed by the public charter school and the
51 authorized chartering entity to resolve disputes relating to provisions of
52 the charter.
53 (q) The manner by which special education services will be provided to
54 students with disabilities who are eligible pursuant to the federal indi-
55 viduals with disabilities education act.
5
1 (r) The manner by which eligible students from the public charter school
2 shall be allowed to participate in dual enrollment in noncharter schools
3 within the same district as the public charter school, as provided for in
4 section 33-203(7), Idaho Code.
5 (s) The process by which the citizens in the area of attendance shall be
6 made aware of the enrollment opportunities of the public charter school.
7 (4) The petitioner shall provide information regarding the proposed oper-
8 ation and potential effects of the public charter school including, but not
9 limited to, the facilities to be utilized by the public charter school, the
10 manner in which administrative services of the public charter school are to be
11 provided and the potential civil liability effects upon the public charter
12 school and upon the authorized chartering entity.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 14642
Amends Section 33-5204, Idaho Code, to provide that charter
schools shall be organized as general business corporations; and
amends Section 33-5205, Idaho Code, to eliminate a reference to
non-profit corporations.
FISCAL NOTE
None
Contact
Name: Senator Gary Schroeder
Phone: 208-332-1324
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE S 1049