#AnotherDayAnotherCharterScandal
LAUSD Candidate Comments On District’s Forgiveness Of Charter School Debt
Dr. Rocio Rivas decries the lack of transparency as the Charter School Division wipes away $7,678,022 in state-mandated overallocation fees.
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“This is an educational injustice that furthers the privatizing agenda to take over public education.”
- Dr. Rocio Rivas
For years, the LAUSD Charter School Division has maintained that the millions of dollars in overallocation fees that are billed to charter schools for taking more space than they were entitled to under PROP-39 were correct. They also insisted that the “rates [were] set by the State Board of Education.” It, therefore, came as a surprise when, without warning, $7,678,022 was removed from the amounts that these charter schools were charged.
The lack of transparency in this process was noted by Board District 2 candidate Dr. Rocio Rivas, who provided the following response when she was asked to comment on the latest developments:
“The Los Angeles taxpayers need to know exactly what happened to the millions of dollars owed to LAs neighborhood public schools and children. The alternative agreements are not transparent avenues to take when dealing with money owed to thousands of students throughout the district. Was this discussed with board members? Was this a unilateral decision, which excluded the voice of the communities largely impacted by charter school co-locations? We need a transparent and clear explanation of the decision-making process that allowed this to take place. California education law does indicate that charter schools are to pay for overallocation fees and does not indicate that the debt can be reduced or forgiven. This is an educational injustice that furthers the privatizing agenda to take over public education.”
All of Rivas’ opponents in the June 7, 2022, primary election were given the opportunity to comment for this article, but none provided a response. As the status-quo candidate with deep ties to Monica Garcia, it can be safely assumed that Maria…