In general, a charter school in a state using this approach receives federal funds directly from the SEA—and thus is treated as an LEA—if the school was chartered by a state agency or through a parent LEA—if the school was chartered by a district or substate agency. Table 2 shows the number of charter schools surveyed receiving IDEA funds or IDEA-funded special education services by funding model. Charter school officials who did not apply cited reasons similar to those who did not apply for title I funds such as (1) a lack of time to do so, (2) they were not eligible for funds, (3) they did not know about the availability of IDEA funds, or (4) they found that applying for these funds would cost more than the funding would provide. Most Charter School Operators Believe That Their Share of Title I and IDEA Funds Is Fair

Regardless of funding model, two-thirds of the charter school operators expressing an opinion believed that they received a fair share of title I and IDEA funding. (See tables 3 and 4.) Factors That Help or Hinder Schools in Accessing Federal Funds Do Not Vary Significantly by Funding Path

Many of the factors that helped or hindered charter schools in accessing federal funds, according to our work, had no relation to whether schools received their funds directly from the state or indirectly through a parent school district. One factor, however, that hindered dependent but not independent charter schools in accessing funds was the working relationship between a charter school and its sponsoring district. On the other hand, several charter school operators in California and Colorado—states that consider most charter schools dependent members of existing school districts— reported that receiving IDEA-funded special education services, rather than funds, from their local school districts helped them access federal funds. State and Federal Efforts to Help Charter Schools Access Federal Funds

Several states and the Department of Education have begun initiatives to help charter schools access federal funds. Some states, for example, are revising or developing alternative allocation policies and procedures to better accommodate charter schools’ access to federal funds and providing training and technical assistance to charter school operators. The Department of Education recently issued guidance to states and school districts about allocations of title I funds to charter schools. Department of Education Efforts to Help Charter Schools Access Federal Funds

During our study, the Department of Education developed guidance to states and LEAs on allocating title I funds to charter schools. The Department also funded the development of an Internet web site with general information on federal programs, charter school operational issues, a charter school resource directory and profiles of states that have authorized charter schools as well as profiles of individual charter schools. Title I and IDEA Allocation Approaches Used in Selected States

In general, states allocate title I and Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) funds to charter schools on the basis of schools’ local educational agency (LEA) status. Eligible expenses are billed to the state and reimbursed up to a school’s allocation. Charter and other public schools apply for assistance to the ISD.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on: (1) the way selected states allocate Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title I and Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) funds to charter and other public schools; (2) factors that help and hinder charter schools in accessing Title I and IDEA funds; (3) whether factors that help or hinder charter schools to access federal funds vary by the funding path used in selected states; and (4) state and federal efforts designed to help charter schools access federal funds.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) in general, states either allocate funds to charter schools directly, considering them to be independent school districts or local educational agencies (LEA), or indirectly through a parent school district, considering a charter school to be a member of an existing school district; (2) overall, about two-fifths of the charter schools GAO surveyed received Title I funds, and slightly more than half of them received IDEA funds or IDEA-funded special education services; (3) most charter schools that did not receive funds did not apply for them; (4) two-thirds of charter school operators whom GAO surveyed and who expressed an opinion believed that they received a fair share of Title I or IDEA funds or IDEA-funded special education services; (5) a variety of barriers, according to GAO's review, have made it difficult for charter schools to access Title I and IDEA funds; (6) these barriers include a lack of enrollment and student eligibility data to submit to states before funding allocation decisions are made and the time required and costs involved in applying for such funds; (7) charter school operators most often cited training and technical assistance and notification of their eligibility for federal funds as factors that helped them access Title I and IDEA funds; (8) many factors that helped or hindered charter schools access federal funds had no relation to the schools' receiving their funds directly from the state or indirectly through a parent school district, but some factors did relate to the funding path; (9) for example, the working relationship between a charter school and its sponsoring district could either help or hinder the school's access to federal funds; (10) in contrast, charter schools treated as LEAs and receiving federal funds directly from the state were largely unaffected by their relationships with local school districts; (11) several states and the Department of Education have begun initiatives to help charter schools access federal funds; (12) some states are revising or developing alternative allocation policies and procedures to improve charter schools' access to federal funds and providing training and technical assistance to charter school operators; and (13) the Department recently issued guidance to states and LEAs on allocating federal Title I funds to charter schools and has funded the development of an Internet web site with information on federal programs, charter school operational issues, a charter school resource directory as well as profiles of charter school states and charter schools.