Legislative Session number- 81

Bill Name: SF0706

Relating to education; expanding the charter school law; authorizing education
cooperative boards and town or city governing entities to sponsor charter
schools and authorizing annual grants to sponsors; requiring the commissioner of
children, families and learning to appoint a charter school appeals board to
review and approve or disapprove charter school applications and waiver
requests, requiring the board to provide outreach and technical assistance to
sponsors; specifying a time limit for school board votes on charter school
sponsorship applications and eliminating the requirement for a certain number of
board members to vote for sponsorship to appeal a negative decision; authorizing
the state board of education to waive the requirement for licensed teachers to
be a majority of the members of the board of directors; reducing the teacher
signature percentage requirement for petitions to convert existing schools to
charter schools; imposing a time limit for completion of charter school
contracts; authorizing the use of nonlicensed teachers under certain licensed
teachers agreement conditions; providing for referendum and integration revenue
for charter schools and increasing building lease aid; establishing a schedule
for the payment of start up costs aid by the department of children, families
and learning; exempting leased charter school property from the property tax;
specifying a certain reference change instruction to the revisor of statutes;
appropriating money to the commissioner for certain charter school aids (mk)