The most significant set of revisions to the state’s charter-school law in more than two decades was signed Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom, putting new curbs on a segment of public schools that has rapidly expanded over time, particularly in big cities.
Painstakingly negotiated for months by lawmakers, charter school advocates and organized labor, the new laws are expected to make it easier for local school boards to deny new charters and for high-performing charter schools to stay open. Charter schools, which serve roughly 600,000 California kids, will have to operate within the boundaries of their authorizing districts, and charter school teachers will have new credentialing requirements.
Charter schools have long been a flashpoint between school reformers and unions anxious to slow the growth of the largely non-unionized educational sector. The legislation seeks to address school quality and oversight issues that have cropped up as the number of California charter schools has skyrocketed to some 1,300.
The new laws were celebrated by Newsom and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, who in the 2018 election both beat back rivals heavily backed by wealthy pro-charter donors. Portrayed as a compromise by the California Charter Schools Association President and CEO Myrna Castrejón. More restrictive charter proposals – including a statewide charter cap – stalled early in the session.
“I’m lovin’ this,” Newsom said as he signed the bill. He added, however, that he was “not naive” in assuming the charter debate is over.
Though the highly publicized charter school clash got most of the attention, hundreds of other proposals were introduced this year with potential impact on K-12 education at large. Only a fraction made it to Newsom’s desk, as with most legislation. High-profile bills to lower local parcel tax thresholds and prohibit schools from hiring teachers through third-party programs such as Teach For America, for instance, fell short of passage.
It’s still unclear if Newsom will sign or veto a number of measures that cleared the Legislature — he has until Oct. 13 to act. Big proposals that have yet to be decided would push back school start times for California middle and high schools, put a $15 billion state bond for education on the March 2020 ballot and enhance paid maternity leave protections for teachers.
A second charter school bill that would close a loophole some small districts have exploited to authorize charters far outside their district boundaries also awaits the governor’s signature.
More bills, however, have already been signed and enacted. Here are some of the most notable new California education laws affecting the state’s K-12 and early childhood classrooms.
Check back at CalMatters.org for updates on our running tally leading up to the Oct. 13 deadline.
California’s charter school overhaul
The laws: Assembly Bill 1505 by Assemblyman Patrick O’Donnell, Democrat from Long Beach, Assembly Bill 1507 by Assemblywoman Christy Smith, Democrat from Santa Clarita, and Senate Bill 126 by Sen. Connie Leyva, Democrat from Chino.
After months of negotiations and heated debate, new rules are coming for California’s sector of publicly funded, independently operated charter schools. All charter teachers will be required to hold a state teaching credential, and local school boards have broader discretion in approving or denying charters, though charters can still appeal to counties and the state.
Charter schools also will be required to follow the same open-meeting laws as school districts under a proposal that was among the first bills Newsom signed as governor. And a loophole that had allowed so-called “far-flung charters” to operate far from the often-tiny school districts that had authorized and were being paid to oversee them will close.
