California School Boards Ass'n v. State Board of Education

Opinion

RIVERA, J.

Charter schools are public schools that operate independently from, but with oversight by, the school districts or county boards of education that approve their charters. Before 2002, charter schools operated without geographic restrictions; a school chartered in Los Angeles could operate “satellite” campuses as far away as Palo Alto or Mendocino. 1 In 2002, after it came to light that a school chartered in Fresno but operating satellites in farflung locations had accumulated $1.3 million in debt and was involved in other irregularities, 2 the Legislature amended the Charter…