04/07/2003 01:33 PM Senate HES

              SB 104-REPEAL CHARTER SCHOOL GRANTS                                                                           
                                                                                                                              
CHAIR FRED DYSON announced SB 104  to be up for consideration. In                                                               
preparing  this  legislation for  charter  schools,  he asked  if                                                               
federal money  was going  to be  there for sure  and when  did it                                                               
start. The answer he got  was almost certainly, but they wouldn't                                                               
know until mid-summer.  He wondered if they  should delay passing                                                               
this bill  until they are sure  of funding and the  answer he got                                                               
back today was  that the governor would prefer that  it pass with                                                               
contingency  language.  He  prepared draft  contingency  language                                                               
saying this bill only goes  into effect if the federal government                                                               
agreement happens.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
MR. EDDY JEANS  explained that this legislation  would repeal the                                                               
state grants for  start-up funds for charter schools.  It was his                                                               
understanding  that one  of the  reasons the  state started  down                                                               
that  road was  because  there was  minimal  federal support  for                                                               
starting charter  schools. He  has a chart  that shows  the state                                                               
was  granting charter  schools $140,000  to  $180,000 in  federal                                                               
funds. The  Legislature passed the  state program  that consisted                                                               
of  $500 per  student  in  addition to  the  federal grants.  The                                                               
highest total for the two grants  combined for any of the state's                                                               
original  charters was  $478,000  - a  family partnership  school                                                               
charter out of Anchorage.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
He  said  the   department  had  a  dialogue   with  the  federal                                                               
government and  had talked with  the director of  charter schools                                                               
and floated  a proposal  that gave  charter schools  $150,000 per                                                               
year for the  first four years with a $45,000  grant in the fifth                                                               
year  for a  total  of  $495,000. That  would  easily exceed  the                                                               
combined  grant  of  federal  and  state  that  school  districts                                                               
received   previously.  However,   there  is   no  signed   grant                                                               
agreement, yet, and the application  is due April 28. They should                                                               
know by mid  to late June whether or not  those funds are coming.                                                               
The  charter  school  coordinator  received an  e-mail  from  the                                                               
director,  Dean Kern,  saying  he liked  the  proposal, but  they                                                               
still have to go through the grant application process.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR WILKEN moved to adopt conceptual amendment number 1.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR GUESS objected for discussion  purposes. She asked if the                                                               
Legislature  would evaluate  the federal  funds it  would receive                                                               
each year or just the first year.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
MR. JEANS replied  that he understands that  this amendment would                                                               
delay  the repeal  of the  state charter  school grant  until the                                                               
department knows  whether or  not they  have secured  the federal                                                               
funding this  summer. The  effective date  of the  bill as  it is                                                               
currently  written  is  July  1,  2004.  They  currently  have  a                                                               
$158,000  request in  this  year's budget,  which  will make  all                                                               
charter schools whole  under this state program.  He thought that                                                               
Senator Dyson's concern  was if they don't get  the funding, then                                                               
the repeal  date becomes July 1,  2004 and it just  falls off the                                                               
books.  If   they  secure  the   federal  funds  this   year,  he                                                               
understands  that the  state grant  would come  off the  books in                                                               
July 1, 2004.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DYSON said the fundamental  question that Senator Guess was                                                               
asking  is what  happens  if the  federal funds  go  away in  the                                                               
future.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. JEANS replied  that at that point the  Legislature would have                                                               
to  determine  whether they  wanted  to  initiate a  state  grant                                                               
program again.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DYSON asked what was the length of the federal commitment.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR.  JEANS replied  five years  and they  will be  requesting $10                                                               
million in federal start up grants.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR GUESS  commented that he  had clarified her  question and                                                               
then asked another  about whether he had thought  about putting a                                                               
sunset of five years on the  repeal. She was concerned about what                                                               
would happen  if the  federal funds  and the  start up  funds for                                                               
charter schools both go away.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MR. JEANS replied  that he did not have any  discussions with the                                                               
administration about a sunset date.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR DYSON added  that Senators Guess and  Davis had discussions                                                               
with him about a possible task  force to take a much broader look                                                               
at the  whole charter school  business. He thought this  would be                                                               
one of the  things they would look at, but  he, personally, would                                                               
not recommend a sunset right now.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR WILKEN moved to report  CSSB 104(HES) from committee with                                                               
individual recommendations and attached  fiscal notes. There were                                                               
no objections and it was so ordered.