S. 1795 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, May 15, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryCharter school funding gets more flexible rules
The Charter Schools Program gives grants to states to help start and support charter schools. This bill loosens some of the rules around how states can spend that money. States would be able to use more of their grant money to help people plan new charter schools before they officially apply, set up loan programs to cover startup costs, and help find buildings for charter schools. States would also have more freedom in how much they spend on technical help and administrative costs.
How it affects you
This mainly affects people starting or working with new charter schools and the state agencies that run the grant program. If you're involved with a charter school application, you might get more support for planning and finding a facility. If you're a parent or student, this could mean more charter school options in your area, though the bill itself doesn't guarantee that outcome.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, May 15, 2025)
Empower Charter School Educators to Lead Act
This bill makes changes to the Charter Schools Program (CSP), which authorizes competitive grants to state entities (e.g., state educational agencies and state charter school boards) to support high-quality charter schools.
Specifically, the bill allows state entities to use up to 5% of their CSP grant funds to make pre-charter planning subgrants to certain prospective charter applicants.
The bill specifies that state entities may also (1) fund a revolving loan fund or similar mechanisms for expenses prior to an eligible applicant receiving reimbursement, and (2) provide assistance to eligible applicants in locating and accessing a charter school facility.
Under the current CSP, state entities must use at least 7% of their CSP grant funds to provide technical assistance to eligible applicants and authorized public chartering agencies. The bill instead allows state entities to use not more than 10% of these funds for technical assistance.
Additionally, under the current CSP, state entities may not use more than 3% of CSP grant funds for administrative costs. This bill raises the cap to 5%.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 1795
A BILL
Empower Charter School Educators to Lead Act
Sponsor: Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) · Introduced May 15, 2025 · Education · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action May 15, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.”