2001 House Bill 4800 ↩

House Roll Call 642: Failed

To amend the charter school law to incorporate the recommendations of the McPherson Charter School Commission, authorized by the governor to find a "compromise" between opponents and supporters of charter schools regarding raising the existing cap of 150 university-chartered schools. This would allow 55 additional charter schools to be created, five in 2002, and 10 per year through 2007. Only one new charter per year would be allowed in Detroit. An additional 175 "special purpose" charter schools would be allowed by 2017, at least 50 percent of whose students must be considered “at risk.” In return, charter schools would be subject to many more state regulations, would have to adopt the same collective bargaining agreements as intermediate school districts under certain conditions, and would be subject to the same or similar comprehensive reporting requirements as regular public schools regarding management, supervisory, and teaching personnel; curriculum; leases; contracts; management contracts with private educational management companies; budgets; and more. Other new regulations would require open enrollment periods, and outreach efforts to special education pupils. If a charter closed, all property and assets it owned would revert to the state. The ability of Bay Mills Community College to create an unlimited number of charters would end, and it would be covered by the same cap that applies to state universities. (Bay Mills Community College technically serves Indians across the state, so under current law can establish charter schools anywhere in the state).