Parents, community members, lawmakers, and statewide advocates joined NYSUT on the Million Dollar Staircase at the New York State Capitol to call for greater charter school accountability. Those in attendance called for the passage of S.9568-A (Mayer)/A.10729-A (Ramos) before the end of session. The bill would require public hearings and, outside New York City, a local vote before a charter school can be established, expanded or renewed in a community.
“Public schools belong to the public,” said NYSUT Executive Vice President Jaime Ciffone. “And yet right now in New York, one of the biggest decisions a community can face — whether a charter school can open, expand, or continue operating — can happen without the community ever having a meaningful vote. That is fundamentally undemocratic. This legislation restores something that should never have been missing in the first place: local voice, local transparency, and local control.”
According to data from the State Education Department, New York taxpayers sent over $4.3 billion in payments to charter schools in just the 2025-2026 school year. This bill is part of a longstanding effort from NYSUT to hold charter schools, which receive taxpayer dollars, to the same accountability standards as neighborhood public schools.
The bill requires two public hearings before any action on a charter application. Inside New York City, the vote on whether to open, expand or renew a charter school would go to the Community District Education Council. Outside of New York City, residents of the school district the charter application applies to would vote on the proposal.
“I join NYSUT, UFT, educators, parents, and my colleagues in fighting for legislation that will require public hearings and a local vote before charter schools can open or significantly expand,” said State Senator Shelley Mayer, sponsor of the bill in the Senate. “Rapid charter school expansion can destabilize district budgets and force cuts to academic programs, extracurricular activities and essential services. This bill helps increase transparency, community involvement and balance by ensuring local residents have a seat at the table before major changes move forward.”
“For too long, charter schools have been approved without respecting the voices of the very communities they impact most,” said Assembly Deputy Speaker Phil Ramos, sponsor of the bill in the Assembly. “Parents, taxpayers, educators, and local residents deserve a meaningful role in decisions that directly affect their neighborhood schools, local budgets and the future of public education.
This legislation is about restoring transparency, accountability, and local control to the process. If taxpayer dollars are being used, then taxpayers should have a seat at the table. No community should be forced to accept major changes to its public education system through backdoor approvals in Albany.
Our public schools are governed openly and democratically, and charter schools receiving public funding should be held to that same standard of accountability. This bill ensures that every community has the right to be heard and the power to help shape the future of education in their neighborhoods.”
In New York state, public schools are governed by local school boards, which are subject to open meetings, and are subject to public votes and fiscal transparency requirements. Charter schools, which are run by private, unelected boards, take taxpayer dollars and should be the same standards of public accountability.
Members of Long Island Against Charter Schools also visited lawmakers to hand out letters detailing the devastating effects of charter schools on their school districts and communities.
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