Georgia § 20-2-2064 - Approval or denial of petition.

§ 20-2-2064. Approval or denial of petition.

A charter petitioner seeking to create a conversion charter school must submit a petition to the local board of the local school system in which the proposed charter school will be located. The local board must by a majority vote approve or deny a petition no later than 90 days after its submission unless the petitioner requests an extension; provided, however, that a denial of a petition by a local board shall not preclude the submission to the local board of a revised petition that addresses deficiencies cited in the denial; and provided, further, that the local board shall not act upon a petition for a conversion charter school, including, but not limited to, a conversion charter for a high school cluster, until such petition: Has been freely agreed to, by secret ballot, by a majority of the faculty and instructional staff members of the petitioning local school at a public meeting called with two weeks' advance notice for the purpose of deciding whether to submit the petition to the local board for its approval; and Has been freely agreed to, by secret ballot, by a majority of the parents or guardians of students enrolled in the petitioning local school present at a public meeting called with two weeks' advance notice for the purpose of deciding whether to submit the petition to the local board for its approval; or If for a high school cluster, has been approved by a majority of the school councils in the high school cluster and has been freely agreed to, by secret ballot, by at least 60 percent of the combined vote of the faculty and instructional staff members of the high school cluster and the parents or guardians of students who reside in the attendance zone of such high school cluster present at a public meeting called with two weeks' advance notice for the purpose of deciding whether to submit the petition to the local board for its approval. Each school council within the high school cluster shall appoint two representatives to a committee that shall conduct the vote. This subsection shall not apply to a system charter school petitioning to be a conversion charter school. A charter petitioner seeking to create a start-up charter school must submit a petition to the local board of the local school system in which the proposed charter school will be located. The local board must by a majority vote approve or deny a petition no later than 90 days after its submission unless the petitioner requests an extension. A denial of a petition by a local board shall not preclude the submission to the local board of a revised petition that addresses deficiencies cited in the denial. A system charter school's school council or governing council, as applicable, may petition to become a conversion charter school. The petition shall be submitted to the local board of the charter system in which the school is located. The local board must by a majority vote approve or deny a petition no later than 90 days after its submission unless the petitioner requests an extension; provided, however, that a denial of a petition by a local board shall not preclude the submission to the local board of a revised petition that addresses deficiencies cited in the denial. A local board shall approve a petition that complies with the rules, regulations, policies, and procedures promulgated in accordance with Code Section 20-2-2063 and the provisions of this title and is in the public interest. If a local board denies a petition, it must within 60 days specifically state the reasons for the denial, list all deficiencies with respect to Code Section 20-2-2063, and provide a written statement of the denial to the charter petitioner and the state board. The state board or the Charter Advisory Committee, if directed by the state board to do so, may mediate between the local board and a charter petitioner whose petition was denied to assist in resolving issues which led to denial of the petition by the local board. (Code 1981, § 20-2-2064 , enacted by Ga. L. 1998, p. 1080, § 3; Ga. L. 2000, p. 618, § 74; Ga. L. 2002, p. 388, § 1; Ga. L. 2004, p. 107, § 19B; Ga. L. 2007, p. 185, § 6/SB 39; Ga. L. 2010, p. 551, § 1/SB 457; Ga. L. 2013, p. 1061, § 26/HB 283.) Editor's notes. - Ga. L. 2000, p. 618, § 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as the 'A Plus Education Reform Act of 2000.'" Ga. L. 2007, p. 185, § 1/SB 39, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as the 'Charter Systems Act.'" Ga. L. 2007, p. 185, § 2/SB 39, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: "The General Assembly finds that schools and school systems should be given high flexibility to tailor their educational programs to meet the unique needs of their communities. In furtherance of this, schools and school systems should be encouraged to use innovative educational programs including local management of schools and should be provided resources to help design and implement innovative programs. The General Assembly further finds that schools and school systems shall be held accountable for student achievement." Law reviews. - For note on 2007 amendment of this Code section, see 24 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 121 (2007).