| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to charter schools; amending s. 1002.33, |
| 3 | F.S.; providing that the sponsor of a charter school shall |
| 4 | not be liable for civil damages for certain actions; |
| 5 | providing that the duty to monitor a charter school shall |
| 6 | not be the basis for a private cause of action; expanding |
| 7 | a school district's immunity from assumption of |
| 8 | contractual debts; providing an effective date. |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 11 |
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| 12 | Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) and paragraph |
| 13 | (f) of subsection (8) of section 1002.33, Florida Statutes, are |
| 14 | amended to read: |
| 15 | 1002.33 Charter schools.-- |
| 16 | (5) SPONSOR; DUTIES.-- |
| 17 | (b) Sponsor duties.-- |
| 18 | 1.a. The sponsor shall monitor and review the charter |
| 19 | school in its progress toward the goals established in the |
| 20 | charter. |
| 21 | b.2. The sponsor shall monitor the revenues and |
| 22 | expenditures of the charter school. |
| 23 | c.3. The sponsor may approve a charter for a charter |
| 24 | school before the applicant has secured space, equipment, or |
| 25 | personnel, if the applicant indicates approval is necessary for |
| 26 | it to raise working capital. |
| 27 | d.4. The sponsor's policies shall not apply to a charter |
| 28 | school. |
| 29 | e.5. The sponsor shall ensure that the charter is |
| 30 | innovative and consistent with the state education goals |
| 31 | established by s. 1000.03(5). |
| 32 | f.6. The sponsor shall ensure that the charter school |
| 33 | participates in the state's education accountability system. If |
| 34 | a charter school falls short of performance measures included in |
| 35 | the approved charter, the sponsor shall report such shortcomings |
| 36 | to the Department of Education. |
| 37 | g. The sponsor shall not be liable for civil damages under |
| 38 | state law for personal injury, property damage, or death |
| 39 | resulting from an act or omission of an officer, employee, |
| 40 | agent, or governing body of the charter school. |
| 41 | h. The sponsor shall not be liable for civil damages under |
| 42 | state law for any employment actions taken by an officer, |
| 43 | employee, agent, or governing body of the charter school. |
| 44 | i. The sponsor's duties to monitor the charter school |
| 45 | shall not constitute the basis for a private cause of action. |
| 46 | 2. Nothing contained in this paragraph shall be considered |
| 47 | a waiver of sovereign immunity by a district school board. |
| 48 |
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| 49 | A community college may work with the school district or school |
| 50 | districts in its designated service area to develop charter |
| 51 | schools that offer secondary education. These charter schools |
| 52 | must include an option for students to receive an associate |
| 53 | degree upon high school graduation. District school boards shall |
| 54 | cooperate with and assist the community college on the charter |
| 55 | application. Community college applications for charter schools |
| 56 | are not subject to the time deadlines outlined in subsection (6) |
| 57 | and may be approved by the district school board at any time |
| 58 | during the year. Community colleges shall not report FTE for any |
| 59 | students who receive FTE funding through the Florida Education |
| 60 | Finance Program. |
| 61 | (8) CAUSES FOR NONRENEWAL OR TERMINATION OF CHARTER.-- |
| 62 | (f) If a charter is not renewed or is terminated, the |
| 63 | charter school is responsible for all debts of the charter |
| 64 | school. The district may not assume the debt from any contract |
| 65 | for services made between the governing body of the school and a |
| 66 | third party, except for a debt that is previously detailed and |
| 67 | agreed upon in writing by both the district and the governing |
| 68 | body of the school and that may not reasonably be assumed to |
| 69 | have been satisfied by the district. |
| 70 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2006. |