Draft Charter Bill Calls for Local Approval, More Reviewers

Bill sponsor — Assemblyman Diegnan — hopes to build consensus before Legislature tackles NJ’s 18-year-old charter law
By John Mooney

The outlines of a new charter school bill are taking shape, with a draft being circulated by Assembly Democrats that would add tighter controls on new charters and expand the number of organizations approving and overseeing the schools.

State Assemblyman Patrick Diegnan Jr. (D-Middlesex), chair of the Assembly’s education committee, has completed a draft that would require local voters to approve new charter schools and would add up to three “reviewers” from colleges and universities.

The draft would also restructure parts of the application process for charter schools and place new requirements on them to annually report and post their enrollment breakdowns and budgets.

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