HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/CS/HB 865 Charter Schools
SPONSOR(S): Education & Employment Committee, Secondary Education & Career Development
Subcommittee, Rizo, Hawkins
TIED BILLS: None IDEN./SIM. BILLS: CS/CS/SB 758
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
1) Secondary Education & Career Development 13 Y, 2 N, As CS Sleap Sanchez
Subcommittee
2) PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee 10 Y, 2 N Bailey Potvin
3) Education & Employment Committee 16 Y, 5 N, As CS Sleap Hassell
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
The bill establishes the Charter School Review Commission (CSRC) within Florida’s Department of Education (DOE),
subject to an appropriation, to assist in the review and approval of charter school applications. The bill:
establishes the membership of the CSRC and provides the CSRC with the same powers and duties that charter
school sponsors currently have in Florida law with regards to reviewing and approving charter school applications;
requires an applicant to the commission to provide a copy of the application to the school district where the
proposed charter school will be located and provides the school district with the opportunity to provide input on
the application, which the CSRC must consider in reviewing the application;
requires a district school board which oversees the school district where a proposed charter school will b e located
to sponsor and supervise the charter school approved by the CSRC; and
authorizes the DOE to contract with a college or university to provide administrative and technical assistance to
the commission.
In addition, the bill makes the following changes:
prohibits a sponsor from imposing any additional reporting requirements unless the charter school is under a
deteriorating financial condition or financial emergency or from withholding any administrative fee for funds
specifically allocated by the Legislature for teacher compensation;
authorizes a charter school which meets specified criteria and receives a school grade lower than a “B,” to be
granted a 5-year charter renewal and requires a 15-year charter renewal be granted to a charter school that
receives a school grade of “A” or “B”;
authorizes any facility or land owned by a Florida College System institution or university, any similar public
institutional facilities, and any facility recently used to house a school or child care facility to provide space to
charter schools under the facility’s existing zoning and land use designations;
prohibits a charter school from being subject to land use regulations which would not be required of a public
school and authorizes a charter school to use a school district’s interlocal agreement, including provisions relating
to the extension of infrastructure;
provides that an interlocal agreement or ordinance which imposes a greater regulatory burden on a charter school
is void and unenforceable;
requires a proportionate share of the educational impact fees to be designated for the construction of charter
school facilities created for a specified purpose;
revises the criteria for nonrenewal or termination of a charter by repealing “other good cause shown” as grounds
and requires a charter school to be under a deteriorating financial condition or financial emergency to not renew
or terminate a charter for fiscal management;
creates the Florida Institute for Charter School Innovation at Miami Dade College to improve charter school
authorizing practices in Florida; and
requires the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to conduct an analysis of charter
school capital outlay and specified federal funds and submit a report to the Governor and Legislature.
The bill has an indeterminate fiscal impact. See Fiscal Comments.
The bill provides an effective date of July 1, 2022.
This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives .
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FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Florida Charter Schools
Present Situation
All charter schools in Florida are tuition-free public schools within the state’s public education system. 1
One of the guiding principles of charter schools is to “meet high standards of student achievement while
providing parents flexibility to choose among diverse educational opportunities within the state’s public
school system.”2 During the 2020-2021 school year, 341,926 students were enrolled in 687 charter
schools in Florida.3
In Florida, several types of entities may authorize or “sponsor” charter schools:
School districts, Florida College System (FCS) institutions, and state universities may sponsor
charter schools.4
State universities may sponsor charter lab schools. 5
School districts, FCS institutions, or a consortium of school districts or FCS institutions may
sponsor a charter technical career center.6
To address the needs of educational capacity, workforce qualifications, and career education
opportunities that may extend beyond a school district’s boundaries, in 2021, the Legislature authorized
Florida’s state universities and FCS institutions to solicit applications and sponsor charter schools upon
approval by the Department of Education (DOE).7 A state university sponsored charter school may
serve students from multiple school districts to meet regional education or workforce demands. 8 A FCS
institution sponsored charter school may exist in any county within its service area 9 to meet workforce
demands and the school may offer postsecondary programs leading to industry certifications for the
school’s students.10
Currently, almost all of Florida’s charter schools are sponsored by school districts. 11
Charter School Sponsor Duties
1 Section 1002.33(1), F.S. Florida’s first charter school law was enacted in 1996. Chapter 96-186, L.O.F., initially codified at s.
228.056, F.S., re-designated in 2002 as s. 1002.33, F.S.
2 Section 1002.33(2)(a)1., F.S.
3 Florida Department of Education, Fact Sheet Office of Independent Education & Parental Choice, Florida’s Charter Schools (Sept.
2021), available at https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/7778/urlt/Charter-Sept-2021.pdf.
4 Section 1002.33(5)(a)1.-3., F.S.; In 2021, the Legislature authorized Florida’s state universities and FCS institutions to solicit
applications and sponsor charter schools upon approval by the DOE. A state university or FCS institution may, at its discretion, deny
an application for a charter school. S. 1002.33(5)(a)3.c., F.S.
5 Sections 1002.32(2) and 1002.33(5)(a)2., F.S.
6 Section 1002.34(3)(a)-(b), F.S.
7 Section 4, ch. 2021-35, L.O.F. (2021). A state university or FCS institution may, at its discretion, deny an application for a charter
school. S. 1002.33(5)(a)3.c., F.S. The Board of Trustees of a sponsoring state university or FCS institution is the local edu cational
agency for all charter schools it sponsors for purposes of receiving federal funds and accepting full responsibility for all local
educational agency requirements and responsibilities. S. 1002.33(5)(b)6. F.S.
8 Section 1002.33(5)(a)3.a., F.S.
9 Section 1000.21(3)(a)-(bb), F.S.
10 Section 1002.33(5)(a)3.b., F.S.
11 See, e.g., Florida Department of Education, Directory of Charter Schools, https://www.fldoe.org/schools/school-choice/charter-
schools/charter-school-directories/ (last visited Feb. 16, 2022).
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A sponsor’s responsibilities include:
approving or denying charter school applications;
overseeing each sponsored charter school’s progress toward the goals established in the
charter;
monitoring the revenues and expenditures of the charter school;
ensuring that the charter school participates in the state's education accountability system; and
intervening when a sponsored charter school demonstrates deficient student performance or
financial instability.12
A sponsor must provide various administrative services to sponsored charter schools, such as contract
management, student enrollment and achievement data reporting, exceptional student education
program administration, eligibility determination and reporting for National School Lunch Program,
assessment test administration, processing of teacher certification data and student information
services.13 As compensation for services provided, a sponsor may withhold an administrative fee of up
to 5 percent of each charter school’s total operating funds, based upon weighted full-time equivalent
(FTE) students,14 and up to 2 percent for a high-performing charter school or an exceptional student
education center that meets specified requirements.15
A sponsor may not charge charter schools any additional fees or surcharges for administrative and
educational services in addition to the maximum percentage of administrative fees withheld. 16 A
sponsor must annually report to the DOE the amount of administrative fees withheld. 17
Support for Charter School Sponsors
In 2015, the Legislature appropriated $250,000 to Florida State University18 to establish the Institute for
Charter School Research.19 The institute’s mission was to conduct research on policy and practice
related to charter schools, with a focus on Florida, and to provide technical assistance and support to
charter school applicants and sponsors. Some of the material the institute developed included online
professional development modules on topics related to the charter application process and research
related to the charter school application and authorization process.20
The DOE supports charter school sponsors by providing resources and technical assistance
information to sponsors.21 Such resources include model forms for the evaluation of charter school
applications 22 and information on Florida’s Principles and Standards for Quality Charter School
Authorizing developed in collaboration with the National Association of Charter School Authorizers
12 Section 1002.33(5)(b), F.S.
13 Section 1002.33(20)(a)1., F.S.
14 Section 1002.33(20(a)2., F.S. For a charter school that serves 75 percent or more exceptional education students, the calculated
percentage must be based on unweighted FTE students.
15 Section 1002.33(20)(a)2.a.-b., F.S.
16 Section 1002.33(20(a)3., F.S.
17 Section 1002.33(20)(a)4., F.S.
18 Appropriations 2015A, Education Appropriations, Conference Offer June 9, 2015 – 4:45 PM, at 19, available at
https://www.flsenate.gov/usercontent/session/2015A/Appropriations/Senate/Offers/AED/Offer_06092015_1645.pdf. The 2015
appropriation for the Institute for Charter School Research was funded as recurring general revenue, however, the institute h as not
been funded since the initial appropriation.
19 Florida State University, Learning Systems Institute, Institute for Charter School Research, https://lsi.fsu.edu/projects/current-
projects/institute-for-charter-school-research/ (last visited Feb. 16, 2022).
20 Id.
21 See Florida Department of Education, Charter School Authorizers, Links for Authorizers, https://www.fldoe.org/schools/school-
choice/charter-schools/authorizers/ (last visited Feb. 16, 2022).
22 Rule 6A-6.0786, F.A.C.; see also Florida Department of Education, Charter Schools, Form IEPC-M2 Standard Model Charter
School Application Evaluation Instrument, https://www.fldoe.org/schools/school-choice/charter-schools/charter-school-reference/ (last
visited Feb. 16, 2022).; In addition to the application evaluation instrument, the DOE also publishes standard forms for charter school
applications, Form IEPC-M1 which a person or entity submitting a charter school application must use, a standard charter contract, a
charter renewal contract, and forms relevant to high-performing charter schools and virtual charter schools.
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(NACSA).23 In 2016, the DOE was awarded a grant from the federal Charter School Program (CSP)
initiative and used a portion of the award to aid charter school authorizing in Florida by conducting
trainings for sponsors in partnership with the NACSA on Florida’s Principles and Standards for Quality
Charter School Authorizing and providing a fellowship program for select Florida sponsors to visit and
observe best practices in other states.24 In 2020, the DOE was awarded another CSP grant and is
presently using a portion of the award to provide additional targeted training and support to sponsors, to
continue the fellowship program, and to host a Florida charter school sponsors summit. 25
Sponsor Accountability
To ensure accountability for Florida’s charter school sponsors, in 2021, the Florida Legislature directed
the DOE to develop a sponsor evaluation framework in collaboration with charter school sponsors and
operators.26 The framework must, at a minimum, address the following:27
The sponsor’s strategic vision for charter school authorization and the sponsor’s progress
toward that vision.
Alignment of the sponsor’s policies and practices to best practices for charter school
authorization.
Academic and financial performance of all operating charter schools overseen by the sponsor.
The status of charter schools authorized by the sponsor, including approved, operating, and
closed schools.
The DOE must compile the results of the evaluation framework and include the results in the required
annual charter school sponsor report.
The DOE worked with charter school sponsors to assemble and collect information for the authorizer
evaluation framework28 and the department intends to continue to gather stakeholder feedback to
further enhance the framework.29
Funding and Teacher Compensation
Charter schools are funded through the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP) in the same way as
all other public schools in the school district.30 The charter school receives operating funds from the
FEFP based on the number of FTE students enrolled.31
Charter school funding includes gross state and local funds, discretionary lottery funds, and funds from
the school district's current operating discretionary millage levy; divided by the total funded weighted
FTE students in the school district; multiplied by the weighted FTE students in the charter school.
Charter schools are entitled to their proportionate share of categorical program funds, for eligible
students and programs.32
23 Florida Department of Education, Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice, Florida Principles & Standards for Quality
Charter School Authorizing (2018), available at https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/9905/urlt/PrinciplesStandards.pdf.
24 Florida Department of Education, Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice, 2019 Authorizer Report (Nov. 1, 2020), pg.
4, available at https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/9905/urlt/19-AuthorizerReport.pdf.
25 Id.
26 Section 4, ch. 2021-35, L.O.F.
27 Section 1002.33(5)(c), F.S.
28 Section 1002.33(5)(c)2., F.S.; see also Florida Department of Education, 2020 Authorizer Report-Addendum C Authorizer
Evaluation Framework (Jan. 15, 2022), at 14-111, available at https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/9905/urlt/20-
AuthorizerReport.pdf.
29 Florida Department of Education, Agency Analysis of 2022 Senate Bill 622, pg. 2 (Nov. 9, 2021).
30 Section 1002.33(17), F.S., see also Florida Department of Education, Charter Schools Frequently Asked Questions, Funding,
https://www.fldoe.org/schools/school-choice/charter-schools/charter-school-faqs.stml (last visited Feb. 23, 2022).
31 Id.
32 Id.
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In 2020, the Legislature created the “Teacher Salary Increase Allocation” and appropriated $500 million
in Fiscal Year 2020-202133 and $550 million in Fiscal Year 2021-2022,34 to assist school districts in the
recruitment and retention of classroom teachers and other instructional personnel.35 The Teacher
Salary Increase Allocation is intended to increase the minimum base salary36 to at least $47,500 for full-
time classroom teachers 37 in Florida, not including substitutes, and certified prekindergarten teachers
funded in the FEFP.38
Before distributing the Teacher Salary Increase Allocation funds, each school district and charter school
must develop a salary distribution plan and submit the plan to the school board or the charter school
governing board for approval.39 The approved plan must then be submitted to the DOE. 40 The Teacher
Salary Increase Allocation requires specific reporting requirements on the planned expenditure for the
allocation for school districts, charter schools and the DOE. 41
Effect of Propo