New York charter sector prepares for fight over limits
Eliza Shapiro
Barely six months after New York City's charter school movement seemingly secured its future with sweeping legislation in Albany, advocates are gearing up for a new battle in the upcoming legislative session to eliminate or increase the cap on the number of new charters that can be created.
Emboldened by their legislative successes last session, thank to help from Governor Andrew Cuomo, charter leaders and groups are in the early planning stages of launching a unified push to get the cap extended or eliminated as a line-item in this year's final budget. Sources said that meetings with legislators will likely begin later this fall after the governor's race, and intensify throughout the winter.
New York City will likely have just 17 slots for new charter schools by this fall, assuming that the charter proposals currently under review are approved, as is widely expected.
Advocates say they're optimistic about their chances, which would all but guarantee rapid growth for the charter sector.
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/city-hall/2014/08/8550463/new-york-charter-sector-prepares-fight-over-limits