Governor's team jumps into fray over contested charter school bill
Amendments to AB 1505 moderate restrictions on charter school growth
After weeks of negotiation, Gov. Gavin Newsom has stepped in to scale back proposed legislation that charter school advocates feared would radically slow charter growth.
Newsom’s office submitted amendments to Assembly Bill 1505 after numerous discussions between his advisers and representatives of charters schools, organized labor and the bill’s author, Assemblyman Patrick O’Donnell, D-Long Beach, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
O’Donnell received the changes on Friday and inserted them into the bill to keep it alive. It will go before the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday in what could be a contentious hearing over the administration’s suggested compromises. Intense discussions are expected to continue, with the intention of passing a bill this fall that all involved say has many moving parts. No one contacted for this story would comment on the record, citing the sensitivity of the negotiations.
The changes reflect Newsom’s determination to de-escalate tensions around charter school growth and find common ground on reforms. Newsom chose to intervene in a bitter fight between the California Charter Schools Association and the California Teachers Association over a bill that has gained national notice as a bellwether of the charter school movement. Earlier this year, at his urging, the Legislature expedited passage of a bill to require more transparency in charter school operations.
As originally proposed, AB 1505 would have given school districts broad authority to reject a charter school’s application and renewal after considering the financial impact CONTINUE READING: Governor’s team jumps into fray over contested charter school bill | EdSource
