Lewis files bill to set 9% net school spending cap for districts leaving lowest 10%

Sen. Jason M. Lewis filed legislation on Jan. 15, 2025, that would set a 9% net school spending cap for Massachusetts school districts that move out of the lowest 10 percent in net school spending and impose limits on approvals of new charter school seats originating from those districts.

The bill, filed as Senate No. 393, would amend paragraph (3) of subsection (i) of section 89 of chapter 71 of the General Laws to make the 9 percent cap the default for districts moving out of the lowest 10 percent, with exceptions for districts whose net school spending already exceeded 9 percent in the year before they left the lowest decile. The text also directs the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to publish a list of districts in the lowest 10 percent and to calculate and provide the total tuition amounts owed by a sending district for each charter school student who was permitted to enroll notwithstanding the cap.

Under the bill, the department would not approve additional charter seats that originate from a sending district that moved out of the lowest 10 percent if that sending district’s net school spending exceeded 9 percent at the time it moved out. The bill states that any district costs related to seats previously approved in contradiction to that restriction would be borne by the department. The bill further says the department shall not require a charter school or the district to reimburse the department for the tuition amount and that the state treasurer shall not deduct that tuition amount from the district’s state school aid, as defined in section 2 of chapter 70 of the General Laws.

Section 2 of the bill reiterates the department’s duty to provide the total tuition amount for each enrolled charter student from a district no longer in the lowest 10 percent who was permitted to enroll notwithstanding the cap, and repeats that neither charter schools nor districts must reimburse the department and that the state treasurer shall not deduct the tuition amount from state school aid. Section 3 states that nothing in the act would require a charter school to unenroll any student in attendance on or before Aug. 1, 2024. The bill contains an emergency clause declaring the measure an emergency law "necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience." The filing also notes similar matter filed in the previous session (Senate No. 304 of 2023–2024).

The measure as filed is a legislative proposal; the transcript provided is the filed bill text and does not include committee action, votes, or a reporting schedule. Further legislative steps (committee referral, hearings, votes) are not specified in the filing text.