Broward schools may sue state

District says education bill favors charters

The Broward school board is considering whether to fight a new education law it says favors charter schools and hampers its ability to pay for things it’s obligated to cover.

At issue: whether to sue the Florida Department of Education over the law’s requirement that districts share property tax revenue with charter schools and welcome charters into neighborhoods with struggling traditional schools. A decision is expected next week.

“We believe that it’s an unlawful public financing of private enterprise,” said Barbara Myrick, Broward’s legal counsel.

Myrick told the school board she hopes to file suit in July to block the law from taking effect while attorneys argue their case. The suit would argue:

The new law funds “nondistrict” projects by funding charter school activity the district may not necessarily approve of. Existing state law prohibits funding of “unbudgeted and non-district” projects, Myrick said.

The new law, by requiring district schools to share property tax revenue, violates existing lawthat does not grant per--

mission for charter schools to collect such tax.

Existing lawcalls for bills in the legislature to contain one subject. Myrick said the 278-page legislation tackles

more than one subject.

Districts are supposed to have the power to approve charter schools to open, but the new law would require them to accept applicants under a “Schools of Hope” program. Under the program, charter operators can tap into a $140 million fund

to open in areas where elementary and middle schools have been rated D or F for at least three years in a row.

Ten attorneys fromother school districts, including Miami Dade, Orlando and Pinellas, joined a phone call with Myrick to air similar concerns.

Gov. Rick Scott signed the $419 million bill June15, approving measures ranging from recess requirements to additional funding for scholarships for children with disabilities.

Proponents have hailed the law’s focus on school choice as a gift for parents to make the best decisions for their children.

House Speaker Richard Corcoran said the program would help students who have been left to “languish in chronically under-performing schools.”

HeandotherHouse leaders said those campaigning against the bill are interested in preserving the status quo, not providing reforms that will help students, respond to parents’ concerns and offer good teachers extra money.

They also said the budget is an increase from last year and provides bonuses to all good teachers.

But public-school advocates argue the law will build up the charter industry at the expense of traditional public schools.

Broward would lose about $100 million from its capital budget, which covers technology, buses and building repairs, over the next five years. And Palm Beach County officials said they could lose about $92 million in the same time frame.

Moody’s Investors Service reported last week that the law could put large school districts’ stable credit ratings at risk. Credit ratings affect how much interest districts must pay on bond programs.

Myrick said the law also carries “abusive penalties” to school districts. Under the Schools of Hope program, districts are required to sign a contract with charters within a 60-day deadline.

If they miss the mark — even if it’s because the charter operator caused the delay — the district has to forfeit the administration fees it collects from every charter in its system until the contract is complete, she said.

Ultimately, Myrick said, the new law will create a parallel system — comprising both nonprofit and forprofit entities — that directly competes with the traditional public school system.

Board member Patricia Good said during a meeting lastweek that she’s ready to take legal action.

“I think that this bill clearly attacks public education and the ability for local school districts to govern their schools,” she said.