Chapter 382

2007 -- H 6128

Enacted 07/06/07

A N A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - ESTABLISHMENT OF CHARTER PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Introduced By: Representatives Palumbo, Ucci, Petrarca, and Mattiello

Date Introduced: March 08, 2007

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 16-77-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-77 entitled

"Establishment of Charter Public Schools" is hereby amended to read as follows:

16-77-6. Budgets and funding. -- (a) It is the intent of the general assembly that funding

pursuant to this chapter shall be neither a financial incentive nor a financial disincentive to the

establishment of a charter school. Funding for each charter public school shall consist of state

revenue and municipal or district revenue in the same proportions that funding is provided for

other schools within the school district in which the charter public school is located.

      (b) The amount of funding which shall be allocated to the charter public school by the

school district shall be equal to a percentage of the total budgeted expenses of the district which is

determined by dividing the number of students enrolled in the charter public school by the total

resident average daily number of students in the school district.

      (c) Funding additional to that authorized from the school district by subsection (b) may

be allocated to the charter public school from the school district to the extent that the combined

percentage of students eligible for free or reduced cost lunch, students with limited English

proficiency, and students requiring special education exceed the combined percentage of those

students in the school district as a whole. The commissioner of elementary and secondary

education shall promulgate rules and regulations consistent with this section regarding the

allocation of funds from school districts to charter public schools within those districts.

      (d) All services centrally or otherwise provided by the school district in which the

charter public school is located which the charter public school decides to utilize including, but

not limited to, transportation, food services, custodial services, maintenance, curriculum, media

services, libraries, nursing, and warehousing, shall be subject to negotiation between a charter

public school and the local school district and paid for out of the revenues of the charter school.

Disputes with regard to cost of services requested from local districts will be adjudicated by the

commissioner of elementary and secondary education.

      (e) A charter public school shall be eligible to receive other aids, grants, Medicaid

revenue, and other revenue according to Rhode Island law, as though it were a school district.

Federal aid received by the state shall be used to benefit students in the charter public school, if

the school qualifies for the aid, as though it were a school district.

      (f) A charter public school may negotiate and contract directly with third parties for the

purchase of books, instructional materials, and any other goods and services which are not being

provided by the school district pursuant to the charter.

(g) Any career/technical charter public school enrolling special education students from

outside school districts with verifiable individual education program (IEP) designations shall

receive from the sending district the average per pupil special education cost of the sending

district.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC02337

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