Reminder About Proposition 39 Charter School Facilities Process Deadlines

The deadline for a charter school to submit its request for Proposition 39 ("Prop. 39") charter facilities from a school district for 2015-2016 was November 1, 2014.  If you timely received a Prop. 39 request from a charter school eligible to request facilities from your district, then the following process and deadlines are triggered. 

  • District's Objections to ADA Projections on or before December 1, 2014:  School district must express in writing any objections to the charter school's average daily attendance (ADA) projections and state the projections the district considers reasonable.  If the district does not object by this deadline then the charter school’s ADA projections are no longer subject to challenge and the offer of facilities must be based on those projections. 
  • Charter School's Response to Objections or before January 2, 2015:  Charter school must respond to the district's objections and reaffirm or modify its previously stated projections, or the district’s stated projections are no longer subject to challenge.
  • School District's Preliminary Proposal on or before February 1, 2015:  At a minimum the preliminary proposal shall include: (1) projections of in-district classroom ADA on which the preliminary proposal is based; (2) specific location(s) of the space; (3) all conditions pertaining to the space, including a draft of any proposed facilities use agreement; (4) and the projected pro rata share cost for use of space and a description of the methodology used to determine that amount.  The preliminary offer must also provide the charter school with a list and description of the comparison group schools used in developing the preliminary proposal, and a description of the differences between the preliminary proposal and the charter school's facilities request as submitted.
  • Charter School's Response to Preliminary Proposal on or before March 1, 2015:  Charter school must express in writing any concerns with the preliminary proposal, addressing differences between the charter school's facilities request and the preliminary offer, and/or make counter proposals.
  • District's Final Facilities Offer on or before April 1, 2015:  School district’s final facilities offer must specifically identify: (1) all space offered on an exclusive use and shared use basis; (2) shared use space arrangements; (3) in-district classroom ADA projections upon which the allocation of space is made; (4) specific location(s) of space; (5) all conditions of the space; (6) the pro rata cost amount; and (7) the payment schedule for pro rata cost.
  • Charter School's Acceptance on or before May 1, 2015:  Charter school must notify the district if it intends to occupy the offered space by May 1st, or 30 days from the date of the school district's final proposal, whichever is later.  If the charter school fails to notify the district of its intent to occupy the space offered (accept the offer) by this deadline, then the charter school waives its right to use district facilities for 2015-2016.

If the charter school accepts the final offer of facilities then the parties must negotiate an agreement regarding the use of and payment for the space to be provided.

What This Means to You

School districts should take care to calendar these deadlines to ensure compliance and ensure rights are not inadvertently waived.  When evaluating internal deadlines districts should also factor in holiday periods and board meeting schedules as they may impact the district's ability to meet the Prop. 39 regulatory deadlines. 

Questions

If you have any questions concerning this Legal Alert, please contact the following attorney from our office, or the attorney with whom you normally consult.

William F. Schuetz, Jr.  | 916.321.4500