King County judge rules state’s charter-school law is constitutional

A King County Superior Court judge ruled Friday that the plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging Washington’s charter-school law didn’t demonstrate that charter schools are unconstitutional.

Friday’s ruling is part of an ongoing legal battle over the constitutionality of Washington’s charter-school law. The lawsuit was filed by a coalition of parents, educators and civic groups.

Coalition members haven’t decided whether they’ll appeal yet, said Rich Wood, spokesman for the Washington Education Association.

The state’s eight charter schools are public schools, open to any student, but they are run by private organizations. About 1,600 students attend charter schools in the state, according to the Washington State Charter Schools Association.

Charter opponents won an earlier lawsuit, with the state Supreme Court ruling in 2015 that the charter-school initiative’s funding mechanism violated the state constitution. Washington lawmakers then passed a new law in March 2016 that funds the schools through lottery money.

The coalition sued again, arguing that the new law violates the state constitution because, they claimed, it diverted public funding to charter schools that aren’t accountable to voters.

Their claim about diverting funds “lacks ripeness,” Judge John H. Chun ruled, as lottery funds are the only revenue source for charter schools.

Chun also ruled that charter schools are accountable to elected officials. School districts can apply to be charter-school authorizers, he said, and schools can be authorized by the statewide Commission on Charter Schools, which includes the state superintendent and other members appointed by elected officials.

In response to the plaintiff’s claim that charter schools are not part of a “general and uniform system of public schools,” Chun said that charter schools are required to teach the same academic learning requirements and participate in the same student assessments as common schools.

Tom Franta, CEO of the charter-schools association, called the ruling a “huge win for kids.” The ruling means charter-school students and their families can relax, he said.

“Charter public schools have been given a stamp of approval from Washington voters, the state Legislature, and now the state’s judicial system,” he said in a prepared statement. “With today’s decision, students can return their focus to learning, and parents can rest easy knowing their kids’ schools can continue to provide their kids with the quality public education they deserve.”

Opponents of the charter-school law are disappointed, but are now turning their attention toward the Legislature as it works to come up with a plan to fully fund basic education, Wood said.