AB549: Bill Text

CORRECTED COPY

LRB-3595/2

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2013 - 2014 LEGISLATURE

2013 Assembly BILL 549

December 9, 2013 - Introduced by Representatives Kooyenga, Kleefisch, Hutton, Pridemore, Sanfelippo and Ballweg, cosponsored by Senators Darling, Vukmir, Farrow and Grothman. Referred to Committee on Urban Education.

AB549,2,7 An Act to repeal 118.40 (2), 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. c., 118.40 (2r) (b) 3., 118.40 (2r) (c) 1., 118.40 (2r) (c) 3., 118.40 (2r) (cm), 118.40 (3) (a), 118.40 (7) (am) 1., 3. and 4., 118.40 (7) (ar) and 118.40 (8) (a) (intro.); to renumber 118.40 (8) (a) 1. and 2.; to renumber and amend 118.40 (1), 118.40 (2r) (bm), 118.40 (2r) (c) 4., 118.40 (4) (a), 118.40 (7) (am) 2. and 118.51 (18); to amend 20.923 (6) (m), 40.02 (55) (intro.), 40.02 (55) (a), 111.81 (7) (f), 111.815 (1), 111.825 (2) (f), 111.92 (1) (c), 115.001 (1), 115.415 (3) (a) (intro.), 115.77 (8), 118.40 (title), 118.40 (1m) (a), 118.40 (1m) (b) 1., 2., 7., 13. and 15., 118.40 (2m) (title), 118.40 (2m) (a), 118.40 (2m) (am), 118.40 (2m) (b), 118.40 (2r) (title), 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. (intro.), 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. b., 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. d., 118.40 (2r) (b) 2., 118.40 (2r) (b) 2m., 118.40 (2r) (b) 4., 118.40 (2r) (d) (intro.), 118.40 (3) (b), 118.40 (3) (c) 1., 118.40 (3) (c) 2., 118.40 (3) (e), 118.40 (4) (title), 118.40 (4) (b) (intro.), 118.40 (4) (c), 118.40 (5), 118.40 (6), 118.40 (7) (a), 119.60 (5), 121.02 (1) (a) 2., 230.08 (2) (dm), 230.35 (1s), 895.523 (1) (a) and 895.525 (5); to repeal and recreate 20.923 (6) (m), 111.815 (1), 118.40 (1m) (title) and 118.40 (3) (title); and to create 118.40 (1b), 118.40 (1p), 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. bn., 118.40 (2r) (b) 1. cm., 118.40 (2r) (bg), 118.40 (2r) (bm) 3., 118.40 (2r) (bm) 5., 118.40 (3) (f), 118.40 (4) (ag), 118.40 (4) (d) and 118.40 (7) (c) of the statutes; relating to: authorizing independent charter schools, eliminating instrumentality charter schools, establishing magnet schools, replication process for certain operators of charter schools, and utilizing an alternative process for educator effectiveness.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

Under current law, school boards may enter into contracts with individuals, groups, businesses, or governmental bodies to establish charter schools, which operate with fewer constraints than traditional public schools. Current law also permits the University of Wisconsin (UW)-Milwaukee, UW-Parkside, Milwaukee Area Technical College, and the city of Milwaukee to establish charter schools directly or to contract for the operation of charter schools. This bill makes various changes to the manner in which charter schools are established, eliminates instrumentality charter schools, and authorizes school boards to establish magnet schools that also operate with fewer constraints than traditional public schools.

Charter schools; independent authorizers

A charter school established by an entity other than a school board is known as an independent charter school. Under current law, the only entities that may establish an independent charter school are UW-Milwaukee, UW-Parkside, Milwaukee Area Technical College district board, and the city of Milwaukee. This bill expands the entities that may establish independent charter schools (independent authorizers) to include all of the following:

1. All four-year UW institutions.

2. All two-year UW campuses.

3. Cooperative educational service agencies (CESA).

4. Technical college district boards.

Under current law, an independent authorizer may establish and operate a charter school or enter into a contract with an individual or group to operate a charter school. This bill eliminates the authority for an independent authorizer to directly establish and operate a charter school. The bill also prohibits an independent authorizer from contracting with a person to operate a charter school in a school district in which at least 80 percent of the number of public schools that received the highest level of performance on the latest school accountability report are located, unless the person first provides the school board of the school district an opportunity to contract to operate the proposed charter school.

Current law includes certain restrictions on where an independent authorizer may establish a charter school. For example, the city of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Area Technical College are authorized to establish charter schools only in the Milwaukee Public School District. Under the bill, each of the following independent authorizers is restricted to establishing charter schools only in the following geographic locations:

1. A four-year UW institution in the county in which the institution is located or in an adjacent county.

2. A two-year UW campus in the county in which the campus is located or in an adjacent county.

3. A CESA within the boundaries of the CESA.

4. A technical college district board, including the Milwaukee Area Technical College district board, in the technical college district or in a county adjacent to the district.

5. The city of Milwaukee in the Milwaukee Public School District.

Finally, under current law, subject to certain exceptions, a pupil is only permitted to attend an independent charter school that is located in the school district where the pupil resides. Under the bill, a pupil may attend any independent charter school, regardless of the pupil's residence or the location of the charter school.

Independent charter schools; replication

The bill creates a new process by which a person who has a proven track record of success for each charter school the person operates in this state may establish and operate additional independent charter schools. Under the bill, a person has a proven track record of success operating a charter school if during each of the two immediately preceding school years the total percentage of pupils attending the charter school who received a score of advanced or proficient on the state assessments for math and reading in all tested grades taught at the charter school is at least ten percentage points higher than the total percentage of pupils attending public schools in the school district where that charter school is located who received the same scores on the same assessments in the same grades. Under the bill, an independent authorizer who receives a letter of intent from a person with a proven track record of success with whom the independent authorizer has an existing contract must, at the person's request, contract with that person to operate up to two additional charter schools per school year. The bill specifies that a charter school established under this process is not a satellite or subsidiary campus of an existing charter school.

Charter schools; school boards

Under current law, there are two processes for a school board to establish a charter school: one is initiated by the school board and one is initiated by a petition signed by either ten percent of the teachers employed by the school district or 50 percent of the teachers employed at one school located in the school district. Current law also requires that information that is required to be included in such a petition is included in a contract to operate a charter school, regardless of how the charter school is established.

This bill eliminates the petition process for a school board to establish a charter school and eliminates the requirement that a contract to operate a charter school include the petition information. The bill also eliminates the requirement under current law that, if a school board must hold a public hearing on a contract to establish a charter school, the school board must consider the level of employee support for the proposed charter school or the fiscal impact of the proposed charter school on the school district.

Under current law, subject to certain exceptions, a school board determines whether a charter school established by the school board is an instrumentality of the school district. If a charter school is an instrumentality of the school district, the school board must employ all personnel for the charter school. Under the bill, a charter school established by a school board is not an instrumentality of the school district and the school board is prohibited from employing any personnel for the charter school.

Magnet schools; school boards

This bill authorizes a school board to establish magnet schools, which are defined as schools that offer a special curriculum capable of attracting substantial numbers of students of different racial backgrounds. Under the bill, magnet schools are provided the same exemption from state education laws that charter schools are provided under current law. The processes to establish a magnet school are the same as the processes by which a school board may establish a charter school under current law. Additionally, a contract to operate a magnet school is subject to similar requirements and restrictions as a contract to operate a charter school, including that a contract to operate a magnet school may not be for a term that exceeds five school years. Finally, the bill requires that the school board employ all personnel for a magnet school.

Charter school governing boards

This bill requires that every charter school be operated by a governing board. The bill further provides that a charter school governing board has all powers necessary to carry out the terms of its contract to operate a charter school.

Educator effectiveness; alternative process

Current law directs the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to develop a system to evaluate the effectiveness of teachers and principals in public schools, including independent charter schools. DPI must also promulgate rules establishing an equivalency process aligned with its evaluation system for a school district or independent charter school that wishes to use an alternative method of evaluating teachers and principals. This bill allows a charter school under contract with a school board that is not an instrumentality of the school district to use an alternative method of evaluating teachers and principals.

For further information see the state and local fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB549,1 Section 1. 20.923 (6) (m) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB549,5,7 20.923 (6) (m) University of Wisconsin System: deans, principals, professors, instructors, research assistants, librarians and other teachers, as defined in s. 40.02 (55), the staff of the environmental education board, and instructional staff employed by the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System who provide services for a charter school established by contract under s. 118.40 (2r) (cm), 2011 stats.

AB549,2 Section 2. 20.923 (6) (m) of the statutes, as affected by 2011 Wisconsin Act 32 and 2013 Wisconsin Act .... (this act), is repealed and recreated to read:

AB549,5,12 20.923 (6) (m) University of Wisconsin System: all positions, including the chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, but not including any other position assigned to the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

AB549,3 Section 3. 40.02 (55) (intro.) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB549,5,20 40.02 (55) (intro.) "Teacher" means any employee engaged in the exercise of any educational function for compensation in the public schools, including charter schools as defined in s. 115.001 (1) that are instrumentalities of a school district, or the university in instructing or controlling pupils or students, or in administering, directing, organizing or supervising any educational activity, but does not include any employee determined to be an auxiliary instructional employee under s. 115.29 (3). "Teacher" includes the following:

AB549,4 Section 4. 40.02 (55) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB549,6,5 40.02 (55) (a) Any person employed as a librarian by any school board in a library in any school under its jurisdiction, including a charter school as defined in s. 115.001 (1) that is an instrumentality of a school district, whose qualifications as a librarian are at least equal to the minimum librarian qualifications prescribed by the state superintendent of public instruction.

AB549,5 Section 5. 111.81 (7) (f) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB549,6,9 111.81 (7) (f) Instructional staff employed by the board of regents of the University of Wisconsin System who provide services for a charter school established by contract under s. 118.40 (2r) (cm), 2011 stats.

AB549,6 Section 6. 111.815 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB549,6,25 111.815 (1) In the furtherance of this subchapter, the state shall be considered as a single employer and employment relations policies and practices throughout the state service shall be as consistent as practicable. The office shall negotiate and administer collective bargaining agreements. To coordinate the employer position in the negotiation of agreements, the office shall maintain close liaison with the legislature relative to the negotiation of agreements and the fiscal ramifications of those agreements. Except with respect to the collective bargaining unit specified in s. 111.825 (2) (f), the office is responsible for the employer functions of the executive branch under this subchapter, and shall coordinate its collective bargaining activities with operating state agencies on matters of agency concern. The legislative branch shall act upon those portions of tentative agreements negotiated by the office that require legislative action. With respect to the collective bargaining unit specified in s. 111.825 (2) (f), the governing board of the charter school established by contract under s. 118.40 (2r) (cm), 2011 stats., is responsible for the employer functions under this subchapter.