S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   7593
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               May 25, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. KELLES -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Education
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the education law, in relation to approval of applica-
   tions of charter schools
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1. Subdivisions 3 and 4 of section 2851 of the education law,
 subdivision 3 as amended and paragraph (e) of subdivision 4 as added  by
 chapter  101 of the laws of 2010 and subdivision 4 as added by chapter 4
 of the laws of 1998, are amended to read as follows:
   3. An applicant shall submit the application to a charter  entity  for
 approval;  PROVIDED,  HOWEVER,  THAT SUCH APPLICANT SHALL FIRST APPLY TO
 THE LOCAL BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE SCHOOL  DISTRICT  OR  THE  COMMUNITY
 DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL. For purposes of this article, a
 charter entity shall be:
   (a) The board of education of a school district eligible for an appor-
 tionment of aid under subdivision four of section thirty-six hundred two
 of this chapter, provided that a board of education shall not approve an
 application  for  a  school to be operated outside the school district's
 geographic boundaries and further provided that in a city having a popu-
 lation of one million or more, the chancellor of any  such  city  school
 district shall be the charter entity established by this paragraph;
   (b) The board of trustees of the state university of New York; or
   (c) The board of regents.
   The  board  of  regents shall be the only entity authorized to issue a
 charter pursuant to this article. Notwithstanding any provision of  this
 subdivision  to  the  contrary,  an application for the conversion of an
 existing public school to a charter school shall be  submitted  to,  and
 may  only  be approved by, the charter entity set forth in paragraph (a)
 of this subdivision. Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to  the
 contrary,  any  such application for conversion shall be consistent with

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD11634-01-3
              

 A. 7593                             2
 
 this section [but shall not be subject to the process pursuant to subdi-
 vision nine-a of section twenty-eight hundred fifty-two  of  this  arti-
 cle], and the charter entity shall require that the parents or guardians
 of  a  majority  of  the  students  then enrolled in the existing public
 school vote in favor of converting the school to a charter school.
   4. Charters may be renewed, upon application, for a term of up to five
 years in accordance with the provisions of this article for the issuance
 of such charters pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred  fifty-two  of
 this  article;  provided, however, that a CHARTER SCHOOL APPLICATION FOR
 RENEWAL SHALL FIRST APPLY TO THE LOCAL BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE  SCHOOL
 DISTRICT  OR  THE  COMMUNITY  DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL. A
 renewal application shall include:
   (a) A report of the progress of the charter school  in  achieving  the
 educational objectives set forth in the charter.
   (b) A detailed financial statement that discloses the cost of adminis-
 tration,  instruction  and  other  spending  categories  for the charter
 school that will allow a comparison of such costs to other schools, both
 public and private. Such statement shall be in a form prescribed by  the
 board of regents.
   (c)  Copies  of  each  of  the  annual  reports  of the charter school
 required by subdivision two of section twenty-eight hundred  fifty-seven
 of  this  article,  including  the  charter  school report cards and the
 certified financial statements.
   (d) Indications of parent and student satisfaction.
   (e) The means by which the charter school will meet or exceed  enroll-
 ment  and retention targets as prescribed by the board of regents or the
 board of trustees of the state university of New York, as applicable, of
 students with disabilities, English language learners, and students  who
 are  eligible  applicants  for  the free and reduced price lunch program
 which shall be considered by the charter entity prior to approving  such
 charter  school's application for renewal. When developing such targets,
 the board of regents and the board of trustees of the  state  university
 of New York shall ensure (1) that such enrollment targets are comparable
 to  the  enrollment figures of such categories of students attending the
 public schools within the school district, or in a city school  district
 in  a  city  having a population of one million or more inhabitants, the
 community school district, in which the charter school is  located;  and
 (2)  that such retention targets are comparable to the rate of retention
 of such categories of students attending the public schools  within  the
 school  district,  or in a city school district in a city having a popu-
 lation  of  one  million  or  more  inhabitants,  the  community  school
 district, in which the proposed charter school would be located.
   Such  renewal  application shall be submitted to the charter entity no
 later than six months prior to the expiration of the charter;  provided,
 however,  that the charter entity may waive such deadline for good cause
 shown.
   THE APPLICATION FOR RENEWAL OF A CHARTER SCHOOL SHALL BE SUBMITTED  TO
 THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL WHERE
 THE  CHARTER  SCHOOL  IS  LOCATED  FOR APPROVAL NO LATER THAN TWO MONTHS
 PRIOR TO SUBMISSION TO THE CHARTER ENTITY. THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE
 COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL IS LOCATED
 SHALL HAVE FORTY-FIVE CALENDAR  DAYS  TO  ACT  FROM  WHEN  AN  APPLICANT
 SUBMITS  THE  APPLICATION  FOR RENEWAL OF A CHARTER SCHOOL. WITHIN SEVEN
 DAYS OF APPROVING SUCH APPLICATION, THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE COMMU-
 NITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL SHALL FORWARD SUCH  RENEWAL  APPLICATION
 TO  THE  APPROPRIATE CHARTER ENTITY ALONG WITH A FORM TO BE DEVELOPED BY
 A. 7593                             3
 
 THE COMMISSIONER WHICH STATES THAT THE SCHOOL  BOARD  OR  THE  COMMUNITY
 DISTRICT  EDUCATION  COUNCIL  HAS  ACTED  TO APPROVE THE CHARTER RENEWAL
 APPLICATION.  WITHIN SEVEN DAYS OF DENYING AN APPLICATION FOR RENEWAL OF
 A  CHARTER  SCHOOL,  THE  LOCAL  SCHOOL  BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT
 EDUCATION COUNCIL SHALL FORWARD A NOTICE OF DENIAL OF  SUCH  APPLICATION
 TO  THE  BOARD OF REGENTS, THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY
 OF NEW YORK, AND THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION. SUCH  NOTICE
 SHALL BE IN WRITING AND INCLUDE FACTUAL FINDINGS, SPECIFIC TO THE APPLI-
 CATION  AND  STATE  THE  REASONS  FOR  SUCH  DENIAL. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY
 PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY, THE DENIAL OF AN APPLICATION SHALL  BE
 CONSIDERED  FINAL  AND  SHALL NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR RECONSIDERATION BY ANY
 OTHER CHARTER ENTITY. A CHARTER  ENTITY  SHALL  NOT  ACT  ON  A  CHARTER
 RENEWAL  APPLICATION  UNLESS  THE  LOCAL  SCHOOL  BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY
 DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL WHERE  THE  CHARTER  SCHOOL  IS  LOCATED  HAS
 APPROVED SUCH CHARTER RENEWAL APPLICATION.
   §  2.    Subdivisions 1, 3 and 7 of section 2852 of the education law,
 subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 101 of the laws of 2010, subdivision
 3 as added by chapter 4 of the laws of 1998 and subdivision 7 as amended
 by section 2 of part D-2 of chapter 57 of the laws of 2007, are  amended
 to read as follows:
   1.  A  CHARTER ENTITY SHALL NOT ACT ON AN APPLICATION UNLESS THE LOCAL
 SCHOOL BOARD OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL  IS  TO  BE
 LOCATED  OR  THE  COMMUNITY  DISTRICT  EDUCATION  COUNCIL  HAS VOTED AND
 APPROVED THE CHARTER APPLICATION. EACH SCHOOL DISTRICT OR THE  COMMUNITY
 DISTRICT  EDUCATION COUNCIL THAT RECEIVES AN APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF
 A CHARTER SCHOOL SHALL ACT ON EACH REQUEST RECEIVED PRIOR TO MARCH FIRST
 OF A CALENDAR YEAR. WITHIN SEVEN DAYS OF APPROVING  A  CHARTER  APPLICA-
 TION, THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL
 SHALL  FORWARD  THE  APPLICATION TO THE APPROPRIATE CHARTER ENTITY ALONG
 WITH A FORM TO BE DEVELOPED BY THE COMMISSIONER WHICH  STATES  THAT  THE
 LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL HAS ACTED
 TO  APPROVE  THE CHARTER APPLICATION. THE DENIAL OF AN APPLICATION FOR A
 CHARTER SCHOOL BY A LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT  EDUCA-
 TION  COUNCIL  SHALL BE IN WRITING AND INCLUDE WRITTEN FACTUAL FINDINGS,
 SPECIFIC TO THE APPLICATION AND  STATE  THE  REASONS  FOR  SUCH  DENIAL.
 NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY  PROVISION  OF  LAW TO THE CONTRARY, SUCH DENIAL IS
 FINAL AND SHALL NOT BE REVIEWABLE IN ANY COURT OR BY ANY  ADMINISTRATIVE
 BODY  OR  CHARTER  ENTITY. A charter entity that receives an application
 for approval of a charter school WHICH HAS  BEEN  APPROVED  BY  A  LOCAL
 SCHOOL  BOARD  OR  THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL shall act on
 each [request] CHARTER SCHOOL APPLICATION received FROM A  SCHOOL  BOARD
 OR  THE  COMMUNITY  DISTRICT  EDUCATION COUNCIL prior to July first of a
 calendar year on or before January  first  of  the  succeeding  calendar
 year, and a proposed charter between the applicant and the charter enti-
 ty  resulting  from  such  application AND THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OR THE
 COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL shall  be  executed  on  or  before
 February  first  of  such succeeding year.   Nothing in this subdivision
 shall be construed to prevent a charter entity from receiving or  acting
 upon  an  application  at any time[. This subdivision shall not apply to
 applications that are submitted pursuant to subdivision nine-a  of  this
 section];  PROVIDED,  HOWEVER,  THAT  SUCH  APPLICATION  SHALL  HAVE THE
 APPROVAL OF THE LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD WHERE THE CHARTER  SCHOOL  IS  TO  BE
 LOCATED OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL.
   3.  A  charter  entity  is  not  required to approve a charter and may
 require an applicant to modify or supplement an application as a  condi-
 tion of approval. ANY MODIFICATION OR SUPPLEMENT SHALL FIRST BE APPROVED
 A. 7593                             4
 
 BY  THE  LOCAL  SCHOOL BOARD OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL
 BEFORE THE CHARTER ENTITY MAY ACT ON THE CHARTER SCHOOL APPLICATION.  An
 existing  private  school  shall not be eligible to convert to a charter
 school. In determining whether an application involves the conversion of
 an  existing private school, the charter entity and the board of regents
 shall consider such factors as: (a) whether  the  charter  school  would
 have  the  same or substantially the same board of trustees and/or offi-
 cers as an existing private school; (b) whether a substantial proportion
 of employees of the charter school would be  drawn  from  such  existing
 private  school;  (c)  whether  a  substantial portion of the assets and
 property of such existing private school would  be  transferred  to  the
 charter  school;  (d) whether the charter school would be located at the
 same site as such existing private school; (e) upon renewal only, wheth-
 er such private school closed within one year of  establishment  of  the
 charter school; and (f) upon renewal only, whether a substantial portion
 of  the  charter school's students were drawn from such existing private
 school.
   7. (a) A revision of a charter shall be made only upon the approval of
 the LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT WHERE THE  CHARTER  SCHOOL
 IS  TO  BE  LOCATED OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT EDUCATION COUNCIL, charter
 entity and the board of regents in accordance  with  the  provisions  of
 subdivisions five-a and five-b of this section.
   (b)  When a revision of a charter involves the relocation of a charter
 school to a different school district, the proposed new school  district
 shall  be  given  at  least forty-five days notice of the proposed relo-
 cation. In addition, the applicant shall  provide  an  analysis  of  the
 community  support for such relocation and of the projected programmatic
 and fiscal impact of the charter  school  on  the  proposed  new  school
 district of location and other public and nonpublic schools in the area.
 THE  APPROVAL  OF  THE  LOCAL  BOARD OF EDUCATION OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT
 WHERE THE CHARTER SCHOOL IS RELOCATING OR THE COMMUNITY DISTRICT  EDUCA-
 TION COUNCIL SHALL BE REQUIRED PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION
 ONE OF THIS SECTION.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.