Public Charter School Facility Fund

Important Legislation Ensures Students In Public Charter Schools Receive Proper FundingNote: House Appropriations Committee to Hold Hearing on House Bill 156 on Tuesday, February 26, 2019, 1:00 PMSenate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee to Hold Hearing on Senate Bill 172 on Tuesday, February 26, 2019, 1:00 PM

“Public charter schools already have limited resources to begin with and are then often forced to divert these resources for things like rent and facility repairs, which prevents them from having the funds needed to invest in innovative programs and classroom activities. Across the nation, public charter schools are leading the way on innovation. Washington, D.C. for example, provided over $140 million dollars in funding for public charter schools just this year, including over $3,000 per student.” - Governor Larry Hogan, January 23, 2019

Public Charter School Facility Fund

Governor Hogan’s Proposed Legislation Provides $1,600 In Per-Pupil Funding For Each Public Charter School Student. “There is a Public Charter School Facility Fund. The purpose of the Fund is to provide funding on an annual basis  to public charter schools in the State to acquire, plan, develop, finance, construct, lease, improve, repair, and maintain public charter school facilities. The Department shall administer the Fund… The Governor annually shall appropriate to the Fund an amount that equals or exceeds the total aggregate enrollment in public charter schools in the State multiplied by $1,600. The amount of funding provided to a public charter school under this section for a single fiscal year may not exceed $1,600 per pupil enrolled in the public charter school as of September 30 of that fiscal year.” (‘House Bill 156,” Maryland General Assembly, 1/23/19)      

• Governor Hogan Committed Nearly $4 Million In His Fiscal Year 2020 Budget For Construction Projects At Maryland’s Public Charter Schools. “Governor Hogan’s recently introduced Fiscal Year 2020 budget designates $2.6 million specifically for construction projects at public charter schools, as well as $1.2 million from the Healthy School Facility Fund, created by bipartisan legislation enacted last year, specifically to fix critical heating and air conditioning issues and other necessary maintenance improvements at public charter schools.” (Press Release, “Governor Larry Hogan Announces Initiatives To Support Public Charter Schools,” Office Of The Governor, 1/23/19)

Governor Hogan Has Been A Champion Of Public Charter Schools

In 2015, Governor Hogan Enacted Legislation Providing Greater Flexibility To Public Charter Schools. "During the 2015 legislative session, the governor introduced and championed legislation to improve and expand public charter schools in Maryland for the first time in nearly a decade. In May 2015, Governor Hogan signed into law Senate Bill 595, the Public Charter School Improvement Act of 2015, which provided greater flexibility to public charter schools.” (Press Release, “Governor Larry Hogan Announces Maryland Charter Schools Week,” Office Of The Governor, 5/3/16)

• The Baltimore Sun Editorial Board: Without Governor Hogan’s Desire To Strengthen Charter Schools, Reform Would Not Have Taken Place; Law Represents A “Modest Step Forward.” "Without Mr. Hogan’s influence, there almost certainly would have been no discussion of reforming Maryland's charter school law, which is arguably the most restrictive in the nation. The General Assembly gutted many of the important elements in the governor's legislation, but the final product represents at least a modest step forward and a basis from which Mr. Hogan can seek more reforms in the future.” (Editorial, “Hogan’s First 100 Days,” The Baltimore Sun, 4/27/15)

In 2017, Governor Hogan Introduced Legislation To Establish The Maryland Public Charter School Authority, An Independent Statewide Public Charter School Authorizer.