Democrats divided on charter schools

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts Democrats appear to be increasingly divided over a November ballot question that would allow more charter schools to open or expand.

The Democratic State Committee approved a resolution Tuesday night to oppose Question 2, saying it would siphon millions of dollars away from traditional public schools.

“Our local communities cannot afford to lose even more money to charter schools,” committee member Carol Donovan, a Democratic state representative from Woburn, said in a statement. “Already, cities and towns are forced to make budget cuts every year due to the state’s underfunding of education and the money lost to charters.”

Charter schools are public schools that operate independently from local school districts. Question 2 would permit up to 12 additional charter schools each year beyond existing state caps on the schools. Charter school spending is currently limited to 9 percent of a district’s net education spending, except in the state’s most underperforming school districts, which include Boston and Lawrence, where the cap is 18 percent.

Ballot question supporters, including Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, reject arguments that charter schools drain resources away from other schools. When a student leaves a conventional public school, the funding allocated for that student goes to the charter, and the state also provides a temporary reimbursement to the district.

Opponents of charter school expansion include teachers unions, which traditionally support Democratic candidates in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Teachers Union contends that even with the state reimbursements, local school districts lost more than $400 million to charter schools in the last fiscal year.