HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) \u2014 A new bill in the Pennsylvania State House looks to tighten cyber charter regulations in the state by preventing districts from being forced to foot the bill for students to attend cyber school outside their own district.<\/p>\n
Rep. Nikki Rivera (D-Lancaster) proposed the bill, called House Bill 2358, because she said districts have to pay for students to attend cyber charter schools despite already offering an in-house cyber program.<\/p>\n
Close<\/a><\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Watch for us in your inbox.<\/p>\n Subscribe Now<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not an effort to shut down cyber charter schools,\u201d Rivera said. \u201cThis is an effort to control spending of public school money on them.\u201d<\/p>\n Under the bill, districts will have to meet certain criteria to get an exemption from paying fees to send students to outside cyber charter schools, including in-person orientations, student residency and attendance verifications.<\/p>\n Republicans in the State House agree on the why, but not the how.<\/p>\n \u201cWe all agree that there should be a quality education,\u201d said Rep. Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster). \u201cWe all agree that students should have access to it, but I think that all cyber programs should be treated equally, whether that\u2019s a cyber school that is statewide or a local one like many of our own school districts provide.\u201d<\/p>\n Cutler said he\u2019s for quality first, and cost later, warning the bill would limit school choice for students who could benefit from it.<\/p>\n