SB297 Alabama 2023 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Will BarfootSenator

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2023

Title

Relating to the Alabama School Choice and Student Opportunity Act; to amend Sections 16-6F-5, 16-6F-6, and 16-6F-10, Code of Alabama 1975, to change the appointment process for the Alabama Public Charter School Commission; to authorize the commission to hire staff; to require commissioners to receive annual training; to provide additional guidelines for the authorizing and application review process; to provide further for the operational and categorical funding of public charter schools in their first year of operation; and to clarify the per pupil federal, state, and local funding of conversion public charter schools during their first year of operation.

Summary

SB297 would reorganize Alabama's public charter school system by changing who runs the Charter Commission, enabling staffing and training, tightening authorization rules, and clarifying first-year funding for startup and conversion charters.

What This Bill Does

It changes the appointment process for the Alabama Public Charter School Commission and lets the commission hire staff with annual training requirements. It adds guidelines for how charter applications are authorized and reviewed, and requires orientation and ongoing training for commissioners. It sets funding rules for startup and conversion public charter schools in their first year, including per-pupil funding and full funding for conversion charters, and updates enrollment rules such as open enrollment, admission preferences, and military-related priorities. It also outlines enrollment capacity, random selection when needed, and the roles of local school boards and authorizers in the charter process.

Who It Affects

• Students and families of public charter schools (startup and conversion) whose funding, admissions options, and enrollment rules would be affected, including new provisions for military dependents.
• Local school boards acting as charter authorizers and the Alabama Public Charter School Commission, whose appointment processes, staffing, training obligations, oversight responsibilities, and funding roles would change.

Key Provisions

• The Alabama Public Charter School Commission will have 11 members appointed by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and Speaker of the House, with a rotating additional member and requirements to ensure diversity and minority-party representation.
• The Commission may hire staff, determine compensation, share department resources, adopt operating rules, review department rules, engage stakeholders, and seek funds for its operations; commissioners must complete orientation and annual training.
• The Commission must hear appeals and may overrule local board decisions to authorize a charter if standards are met; local boards can be appealed if they deny an application.
• Startup public charter schools are capped at 10 approvals per fiscal year; once the cap is reached, no new startup charters may be approved in that year; conversions have no such cap and are overseen differently.
• Local school boards may register as charter authorizers, subject to standards and five-year renewal; if a board declines to register, startup charters within that system can be denied, and the process can be appealed to the Commission.
• Funding for startup charters comes from the Education Trust Fund based on anticipated enrollment in their charter applications; conversion charters receive the same funding level as before conversion; both types receive federal, state, and local funds through appropriate channels and distributions are directed to the charter operators.
• Public charter schools receive per-pupil state and local funding, with rules for distribution, including quarterly payments; transportation funding is provided similarly to non-charter public schools, and charters may contract for transportation.
• Enrollment rules require open enrollment to state residents, with non-discrimination; admissions may be limited by age/grade but must reflect preferences (siblings, prior-year enrollees, children of founders/employees up to 10%), and random selection if capacity is insufficient; special provisions exist for areas near military installations and for dependents of military personnel.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Alabama School Choice and Student Opportunity Act