*ACTION ALERT* AB 84: California's Assault on Educational Freedom Must Stop
Charter Schools Are on the Path to Extinction, Threatened Assembly Vote by June 6
A Devastating Bill Heads for the Assembly Floor
Assembly Bill 84 is a ticking time bomb waiting to detonate for California families. Ir must pass the Assembly Floor by this Friday, or it is dead for the year. AB 84, authored by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D-South Bay), vows to destroy non-classroom-based charter schools—saving graces for students who thrive outside classroom walls. Last Monday, AB 84 passed the Assembly Education and Appropriations Committees and is one vote away from a vote in the full Assembly. This bill doesn't play around with education; it's a calculated attack on parental discretion and student opportunity.
Attacking the Most Vulnerable Students
AB 84 slashes funding for non-classroom-based charter schools up to 30% per student, a cut that would force many to close. These schools, employing alternative models of learning like independent study and homeschooling, serve students who are not a good fit for the traditional public school—learning disabled children, troubled children, and children with safety concerns. The bill further triples the cost of oversight and burdens the schools with excessive regulations, driving small authorizers out of business. It is a double standard that penalizes good programs while creating a gigantic new bureaucracy that solves no real problem and takes away from at-risk students the individualized instruction they need to succeed.
A Threat to Parental Rights and Small Businesses
Beyond schools, AB 84 threatens the underpinnings of educational choice in California. It threatens small businesses that make homeschooling families possible by severing the programs that they rely upon. This isn't just about charters—it's the first step towards eliminating homeschooling, taking away from parents the ability to choose the best education for their children. Sacramento politicians send the message loud and clear: the California Teachers Association, the public employee union for public school teachers, wants to kill the competition, and we do what they tell us to do. This is a power grab, plain and simple, and it will disrupt the lives of thousands of families who use these alternatives to thrive.
The Bigger Picture: A War on Educational Freedom
AB 84 isn't an end; it's part of an effort to wrest education from local stakeholders. By targeting non-classroom-based charters, AB 84 sends a discomfiting message that some education models—and the students they serve—aren't as deserving. The state claims it's about accountability, but these charter students tend to perform better than their public school peers on standardized tests. Meanwhile, the bill glosses over the real deficits of traditional schools, instead punishing schools that do work. It's a blatant assault on the variety of school choices families need, especially in an already struggling system that is failing many kids.
Act Now to Stop AB 84 Before It's Too Late
We can't let AB 84 take away the schooling options families depend on. The Assembly floor vote on this has to happen by the end of Friday, and we can't afford to wait. Call your Assembly representative and Senator today and tell them to vote "NO" on AB 84 or to abstain. Pressure Governor Newsom to veto the bill should it land on his desk. Click this link to get your representatives and send them a message quickly. Every voice matters, and the time to let them be heard is today. If we do not stop this bill, millions of students will have their chance for a tailored education taken away from them. Finally, post this to every one of your friends. It can be stopped if people make their voices heard.