Dive Brief:
- The California Charter School Association has filed suit against the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), alleging that $450 million allocated by a 2008 bond measure for construction projects on charter schools has not been handed over as promised, and that it was instead reduced to $224 million.
- Lawyers for the district, however, say that it is their prerogative to reallocate and move funding around as they see fit.
- The California Charter School Association is also seeking public records related to the budget cuts, saying that LAUSD hasn't yet released public information related to the money that they previously requested.
Dive Insight:
Using taxpayer money to fund the construction of charter schools has been controversial in other states, like Florida. In Los Angeles, where an overall budget crisis looms, the board may have seen no choice but to reallocate the money in question.
Los Angeles Unified has had a tough year, with a federal investigation into a 1:1 tech initiative that was supposed to give an iPad to every student. The iPad investigation remains ongoing, with some media outlets describing it as being "surrounded by secrecy." The district has also fielded a number of lawsuits in recent years, including high-profile cases alleging teacher discrimination.