State House’s charter school bill clears committee

JACKSON — A proposal to expand charter schools is moving toward a vote in the full House.

The House Education Committee voted 16-14 to approve House Bill 369 after about 90 minutes of debate.

Committee Chairman John Moore, a Brandon Republican, says he expects the full House to vote on the measure in a “couple of days.”

The Senate passed a separate bill last week.

Charter schools are public schools that agree to meet certain standards in exchange for freedom from regulations.

The bill would allow broad expansion of charter schools. Current Mississippi law allows a small number of existing schools to convert to charters, but none have done so.

The House bill would limit charters to 15 a year. It would allow districts rated “A,” ”B” and “C” to block charters.