Don't let charters take more money from public, neighborhood schools.
HB4277 Charter School Full Funding
We need you to take action now! We expect a vote on HB4277 soon. Provide your elected representative in Springfield a balanced understanding regarding Charter School Full Funding.
At this point, our legislators seem unaware of how severely HB4277 would hurt education for the majority of our students. Chicago Public Schools was vocal about their claim of a $712 million budget deficit when they were deciding on our raises and in contract negotiations. However, they have kept silent on the issue as it relates to charter school funding.
PLEASE USE THE INFORMATION LINKS BELOW TO PHONE THE LISTED LEGISLATORS, ESPECIALLY IF ONE IS YOUR DISTRICT'S REPRESENTATIVE. If you don't know who your representative is click here, enter your zip, and choose the State House representative, which should be the second-to-last name in the list that appears.
Explain to your elected representative how FULL PUBLIC FUNDING of charters will negatively impact the overwhelming majority of neighborhood schools in their districts.
Your representative may think he/she is casting a vote of YES on full tax-dollar funding of charters because they have, perhaps, two charter schools in their district. However, they have many more neighborhood schools in their district.
When you call and email him/her TODAY ask these four questions:
- How many non-charter, neighborhood schools are in your district?
- How many charters are in your district?
- Do you know that your support for HB4277 (Charter School Full Funding) will NOT help the children in your district overall—in fact, this bill will HARM them?
- Do you know that charter schools are not subject to the same standards as public schools—these schools often don't comply with the Open Meetings Act or Freedom of Information Act.
Follow up those questions with the following facts:
- CPS claims they have a $712 million deficit due to the serious fiscal crisis resulting from the decrease in federal, state, and local revenues. By increasing the required funding for charters, the state would decrease the amount available for neighborhood public schools, which serve the vast majority of CPS students.
- CPS FY 2012 budget already includes a funding increase in 2011–12 for charter schools.
- Chicago charter schools already receive:
- $420 million in annual CPS support for charter and contract schools
- $9.7 million in new funds to open four new charter schools in 2011–2012
- $6.7 million in new funds to support 1,000 expanded slots for new students at currently operating schools in 2011–2012
- $22 million in new funds to add additional grades for 3,000 students in 2011–2012
- Charter schools routinely exclude special education students and English Language Learning students. While charters are publicly funded, they do not provide a transparent accounting of how they use public funds.
- Charter schools have not lived up to their promise. Charter school operators were granted these schools because they said they would educate students better for less and generate their own funding in exchange for relaxed oversight.
Before you hang up the phone or click send on your email, propose the following to your legislator:
- HB4277 highlights the need to develop a funding formula that is equitable for public schools in Illinois.
- However, HB4277 presents a false choice with regard to equality—it fosters an unjust competition for Illinois’ already meager public education funds.
- Please vote NO on HB4277 and work with us to find revenue sources in Illinois that will fund public education equitably.
Tell your representatives to Oppose HB4277 Amendment #1.
In addition to your e-mail, please also phone these representatives.
