Porter comments on House Bill 1136, which would transform certain public schools into charters

Last week, Indiana House Republicans filed House Bill 1136 to reorganize Indiana’s school corporations. The bill provides that if 50% or more students live outside a school district, then that district must be transformed into a charter school.  

State Rep. Gregory W. Porter (D-Indianapolis) released the following statement: 

”We haven’t started session yet, but when I saw this bill filed I was mystified and dismayed. The real intent behind HB 1136 is evident: to divert funds from traditional public schools. It’s to ensure charter schools get a share of IPS’ referendum funds. The majority party severely underfunds our public schools, but that’s not enough. They’re threatening the very existence of urban public schools. 

“This is a ‘bolt out of the blue’ since this is the first time any sort of transformation like this has been discussed. The dissolution of public schools has never been seriously proposed. Most of the affected schools are in Gary and Indianapolis, majority-minority communities, where we’ve seen multiple issues with charter schools. 

“Charters can dissolve at any time, leaving their students out in the cold. Without fail, many charter schools dissolve each year at random points of the academic year. Keep in mind that last year Hoosier taxpayers lost $154 million in fraud to a couple of online charter schools. The charter school model is unstable, so the desire to infuse them with even more state dollars is financially foolish. 

“The supermajority touts school choice, but what about the parents who want their children to attend public school? This bill is a naive solution to the difficulties our urban schools experience. Remember the money follows the child, and the majority is telling parents how that money will be spent.”