Auditor General DePasquale to Audit Charter-School Payment Appeals

AUDITOR GENERAL Eugene DePasquale

As a result of the recent confusion surrounding payments to charter schools during Pennsylvania’s budget impasse, Auditor General Eugene DePasquale today announced his office is auditing the Pennsylvania Dept. of Education’s handling of charter school tuition disbursement appeals.

“The ongoing State budget impasse brought to light potential failures in the process the Dept. of Education uses to handle school districts’ appeals of payments to charter schools,” DePasquale said. “With more than $1.1 billion of State education funding going toward charter-school tuition payments, it is important to make sure all education funding is handled accurately and appropriately.

“The current education-funding system often pits school districts and charter schools against each other,” he said. “The budget stalemate is exacerbating already tense relationships between charters and districts in every region of the state, including Erie, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Scranton, and York.

“When there are disagreements between public school districts and charter schools over tuition payments, the appeals process should be judicious, fair, timely, and understandable,” DePasquale said.

In October, DePasquale spoke out in support of the State Treasury stopping the Dept. of Education from diverting property tax relief funds to make direct payments to charter schools during the budget impasse. Several lawsuits related to the issue are still under review by the courts.

“As the State budget impasse drags on, the convoluted effort to use property-tax relief funds to make payments to charter schools is confusing for school districts and charter schools alike,” DePasquale said. “We need more legal clarity and guidance for both PDE and our schools.”

The audit begins this month covering Jan. 1, 2011, through the end of fieldwork, and focuses on evaluating the adequacy of PDE’s processes and procedures for addressing charter-school payment appeals in accordance with State law.

According to the Dept. of Education, more than 130,000 students are enrolled in more than 170 brick-and-mortar and cyber charter schools. Pennsylvania public-school districts spend more than $1.1 billion annually on tuition payments to charter schools.

DePasquale issued a special report titled “Pennsylvania Charter Schools Accountability and Transparency: Time for a Tune-Up” in 2014 with recommendations to improve accountability, effectiveness, and transparency of charter schools.

“Depending on what we find in this audit, we may have some additional recommendations to ensure that every dollar of education funding is helping students learn,” DePasquale said.

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