This bill amends existing laws regarding the review process for charter school applications in Wyoming, specifically assigning the state superintendent the responsibility of reviewing these applications. It requires that applicants submit their charter school applications to both an authorizer and the state superintendent simultaneously. The state superintendent must notify the applicant and the authorizer within 30 days whether the application is complete or incomplete, detailing any deficiencies. Importantly, the state superintendent is not authorized to deny or withhold an application from consideration by the authorizer.

Additionally, the bill modifies the timeline for the authorizer to hold a public hearing on the application, which must occur within 60 days of receiving the state superintendent's determination of completeness. The authorizer is then required to approve or deny the application within 90 days after this determination. The bill also repeals a provision that required the Wyoming charter school authorizing board to submit applications to the department of education for compliance review, as this function is now covered by the state superintendent's review. The new provisions will take effect for applications submitted on or after July 1, 2026.

Statutes affected:
26LSO-0093 v0.6: 21-3-307