SB2779 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB098 18280 NHT 53413 b

98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
SB2779

Introduced 1/30/2014, by Sen. Linda Holmes

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

105 ILCS 5/27A-8
105 ILCS 5/27A-9

Amends the Charter Schools Law of the School Code. Provide that if the State Charter School Commission or any other State entity to which an appeal may be submitted under the Law reverses a local school board's decision to deny, revoke, or not renew a charter, the reversal may not be implemented unless the question of whether a charter school shall be established or continue operating has been submitted to the electors of the school district at a regular election and approved by a majority of the electors voting on the question. Sets forth requirements for the referendum.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Sections 27A-8 and 27A-9 as follows:

(105 ILCS 5/27A-8)

Sec. 27A-8. Evaluation of charter proposals.

(a) This Section does not apply to a charter school established by referendum under Section 27A-6.5. In evaluating any charter school proposal submitted to it, the local school board and the Commission shall give preference to proposals that:

(1) demonstrate a high level of local pupil, parental, community, business, and school personnel support;

(2) set rigorous levels of expected pupil achievement and demonstrate feasible plans for attaining those levels of achievement; and

(3) are designed to enroll and serve a substantial proportion of at-risk children; provided that nothing in the Charter Schools Law shall be construed as intended to limit the establishment of charter schools to those that serve a substantial portion of at-risk children or to in any manner restrict, limit, or discourage the establishment of charter schools that enroll and serve other pupil populations under a nonexclusive, nondiscriminatory admissions policy.

(b) In the case of a proposal to establish a charter school by converting an existing public school or attendance center to charter school status, evidence that the proposed formation of the charter school has received majority support from certified teachers and from parents and guardians in the school or attendance center affected by the proposed charter, and, if applicable, from a local school council, shall be demonstrated by a petition in support of the charter school signed by certified teachers and a petition in support of the charter school signed by parents and guardians and, if applicable, by a vote of the local school council held at a public meeting. In the case of all other proposals to establish a charter school, evidence of sufficient support to fill the number of pupil seats set forth in the proposal may be demonstrated by a petition in support of the charter school signed by parents and guardians of students eligible to attend the charter school. In all cases, the individuals, organizations, or entities who initiate the proposal to establish a charter school may elect, in lieu of including any petition referred to in this subsection as a part of the proposal submitted to the local school board, to demonstrate that the charter school has received the support referred to in this subsection by other evidence and information presented at the public meeting that the local school board is required to convene under this Section.

(c) Within 45 days of receipt of a charter school proposal, the local school board shall convene a public meeting to obtain information to assist the board in its decision to grant or deny the charter school proposal. A local school board may develop its own process for receiving charter school proposals on an annual basis that follows the same timeframes as set forth in this Article. Only after the local school board process is followed may a charter school applicant appeal to the Commission.

(d) Notice of the public meeting required by this Section shall be published in a community newspaper published in the school district in which the proposed charter is located and, if there is no such newspaper, then in a newspaper published in the county and having circulation in the school district. The notices shall be published not more than 10 days nor less than 5 days before the meeting and shall state that information regarding a charter school proposal will be heard at the meeting. Copies of the notice shall also be posted at appropriate locations in the school or attendance center proposed to be established as a charter school, the public schools in the school district, and the local school board office. If 45 days pass without the local school board holding a public meeting, then the charter applicant may submit the proposal to the Commission, where it must be addressed in accordance with the provisions set forth in subsection (g) of this Section.

(e) Within 30 days of the public meeting, the local school board shall vote, in a public meeting, to either grant or deny the charter school proposal. If the local school board has not voted in a public meeting within 30 days after the public meeting, then the charter applicant may submit the proposal to the Commission, where it must be addressed in accordance with the provisions set forth in subsection (g) of this Section.

(f) Within 7 days of the public meeting required under subsection (e) of this Section, the local school board shall file a report with the State Board granting or denying the proposal. If the local school board has approved the proposal, within 30 days of receipt of the local school board's report, the State Board shall determine whether the approved charter proposal is consistent with the provisions of this Article and, if the approved proposal complies, certify the proposal pursuant to Section 27A-6.

(g) If the local school board votes to deny the proposal, then the charter school applicant has 30 days from the date of that vote to submit an appeal to the Commission. In such instances or in those instances referenced in subsections (d) and (e) of this Section, the Commission shall follow the same process and be subject to the same timelines for review as the local school board.

(h) The Commission may reverse a local school board's decision to deny a charter school proposal if the Commission finds that the proposal (i) is in compliance with this Article and (ii) is in the best interests of the students the charter school is designed to serve. If the Commission or any other State entity to which an appeal may be submitted under this Article reverses a local school board's decision to deny a charter school proposal, the reversal may not be implemented unless the establishment of a charter school has been approved by referendum under subsection (e-5) of Section 27A-9 of this Code. Final decisions of the Commission are subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review Law.

(i) In the case of a charter school proposed to be jointly authorized by 2 or more school districts, the local school boards may unanimously deny the charter school proposal with a statement that the local school boards are not opposed to the charter school, but that they yield to the Commission in light of the complexities of joint administration.

(Source: P.A. 96-105, eff. 7-30-09; 96-734, eff. 8-25-09; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10; 97-152, eff. 7-20-11.)

(105 ILCS 5/27A-9)

Sec. 27A-9. Term of charter; renewal.

(a) A charter may be granted for a period not less than 5 and not more than 10 school years. A charter may be renewed in incremental periods not to exceed 5 school years.

(b) A charter school renewal proposal submitted to the local school board or the Commission, as the chartering entity, shall contain:

(1) A report on the progress of the charter school in achieving the goals, objectives, pupil performance standards, content standards, and other terms of the initial approved charter proposal; and

(2) A financial statement that discloses the costs of administration, instruction, and other spending categories for the charter school that is understandable to the general public and that will allow comparison of those costs to other schools or other comparable organizations, in a format required by the State Board.

(c) A charter may be revoked or not renewed if the local school board or the Commission, as the chartering entity, clearly demonstrates that the charter school did any of the following, or otherwise failed to comply with the requirements of this law:

(1) Committed a material violation of any of the conditions, standards, or procedures set forth in the charter.

(2) Failed to meet or make reasonable progress toward achievement of the content standards or pupil performance standards identified in the charter.

(3) Failed to meet generally accepted standards of fiscal management.

(4) Violated any provision of law from which the charter school was not exempted.

In the case of revocation, the local school board or the Commission, as the chartering entity, shall notify the charter school in writing of the reason why the charter is subject to revocation. The charter school shall submit a written plan to the local school board or the Commission, whichever is applicable, to rectify the problem. The plan shall include a timeline for implementation, which shall not exceed 2 years or the date of the charter's expiration, whichever is earlier. If the local school board or the Commission, as the chartering entity, finds that the charter school has failed to implement the plan of remediation and adhere to the timeline, then the chartering entity shall revoke the charter. Except in situations of an emergency where the health, safety, or education of the charter school's students is at risk, the revocation shall take place at the end of a school year. Nothing in this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly shall be construed to prohibit an implementation timetable that is less than 2 years in duration.

(d) (Blank).

(e) Notice of a local school board's decision to deny, revoke, or not to renew a charter shall be provided to the Commission and the State Board. The Commission may reverse a local school board's decision if the Commission finds that the charter school or charter school proposal (i) is in compliance with this Article, and (ii) is in the best interests of the students it is designed to serve. If the Commission or any other State entity to which an appeal may be submitted under this Article reverses a local school board's decision, the reversal may not be implemented unless the establishment or continued operation of a charter school has been approved by referendum under subsection (e-5) of this Section. The State Board may condition the granting of an appeal on the acceptance by the charter school of funding in an amount less than that requested in the proposal submitted to the local school board. Final decisions of the Commission shall be subject to judicial review under the Administrative Review Law.

(e-5) If the Commission or any other State entity to which an appeal may be submitted under this Article reverses a local school board's decision to deny, revoke, or not renew a charter, the reversal may not be implemented unless the question of whether a charter school shall be established or continue operating has been submitted to the electors of the school district at a regular election and approved by a majority of the electors voting on the question. The Commission or other State entity must certify the question to the proper election authority. The election authority must submit the question at an election in accordance with the Election Code, which election must be at least 6 months after notice of the local school board's decision is provided to the State entity.

The election authority must submit the question in substantially the following form for the establishment of a charter school:

Shall (name of proposed charter school) under charter school proposal (charter school proposal number) be established? The election authority must submit the question in substantially the following form for the continued operation of a charter school:

Shall (name of charter school) continue operating? The election authority must record the votes as "Yes" or "No".

If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote in the affirmative, the Commission or other State entity may implement its reversal of the local school board's decision to deny, revoke, or not renew a charter, subject to the other requirements of this Article.

(f) Notwithstanding other provisions of this Article, if the Commission on appeal reverses a local school board's decision or if a charter school is approved by referendum under Section 27A-6.5 of this Code, the Commission shall act as the authorized chartering entity for the charter school. The Commission shall approve the charter and shall perform all functions under this Article otherwise performed by the local school board. The State Board shall determine whether the charter proposal approved by the Commission is consistent with the provisions of this Article and, if the approved proposal complies, certify the proposal pursuant to this Article. The State Board shall report the aggregate number of charter school pupils resident in a school district to that district and shall notify the district of the amount of funding to be paid by the Commission to the charter school enrolling such students. The Commission shall require the charter school to maintain accurate records of daily attendance that shall be deemed sufficient to file claims under Section 18-8.05 notwithstanding any other requirements of that Section regarding hours of instruction and teacher certification. The State Board shall withhold from funds otherwise due the district the funds authorized by this Article to be paid to the charter school and shall pay such amounts to the charter school.

(g) For charter schools authorized by the Commission, the Commission shall quarterly certify to the State Board the student enrollment for each of its charter schools.

(h) For charter schools authorized by the Commission, the State Board shall pay directly to a charter school any federal or State aid attributable to a student with a disability attending the school.

(Source: P.A. 96-105, eff. 7-30-09; 97-152, eff. 7-20-11.)