New charter school proposal introduced

But the bill has been collecting dust for the last six months as House Republican leaders failed to persuade enough members to vote for it. House Speaker Chuck Perricone (R-Kalamazoo) has insisted several times that a deal was imminent, but it never came through.

Now Republicans are scratching their original proposal raising the cap on the number of schools that universities can charter from 150 to 225 in favor of a new plan unveiled last week by Gov. John Engler.

His legislation would raise the cap by 50 next year and 25 each year thereafter. Engler said he doesn't have the votes in the House to remove the cap completely and must compromise. He's also added a five-person state oversight board to the plan in a move to appease lawmakers who want more public scrutiny of taxpayer-funded charter schools.

Engler's legislation also would exempt charter schools from the cap if they were aimed at students with discipline problems or built in the same location as day care centers. The day care center proposal is meant to encourage more businesses to open charter schools.

House Democrats are gearing up for a fight. Minority Leader Mike Hanley (D-Saginaw) said the governor's plan gives "lip service to the oversight issue."

Rep. Rose Bogardus (D-Davison), ranking Democrat on the House Education Committee, complains that Engler's oversight board is a bad idea.

"The last thing taxpayers deserve is another unelected, unaccountable board looking after their tax dollars," she said. "This is just another Engler power grab that does nothing to ensure more accountability or quality in the classroom."

Engler wants to push the legislation through before the Legislature goes on break Dec. 10 so new charter schools could open next fall. Charter school advocates think they will have enough votes now that additional oversight would be provided, but it's unclear if Engler has done enough to encourage doubters to raise the cap.

The Senate, meanwhile, has a long list of bills to tackle in the final two weeks of session.

Topping the Senate agenda is an issue long pressed by Republican lawmakers - prohibiting local communities from forcing employees to live in the city where they work. The Senate passed the bill in May, but the House passed a different version so the bill has returned to the Senate for approval.

As passed by the House, the bill would ban residency requirements as a condition of employment unless they're included in a collective bargaining agreement or employment contract. Married couples who work for different cities also would be exempt from all residency requirements.

Since the original Senate version would have banned all residency requirements outright, the bill may to go to a House-Senate conference committee to hammer out a consensus.

According to the Michigan Municipal League, about 80 Michigan cities require police officers, firefighters or other public employees to live within city limits. Backers of such laws argue it should be up to a local government, not the state, whether residency should be a requirement.

Other legislation that may draw controversy in the Senate are bills to permit people who already own wolf hybrids, bears and large cats to keep them, although they wouldn't be permitted to breed the animals. Owners would have to obtain licenses for existing pets and no new owners would be permitted.

Also before the Senate this week is a bill designed to outlaw identity theft, or obtaining personal information of another person with the intent to use it unlawfully. Some people have found their credit histories ruined by people who steal their credit card and Social Security numbers and use them to make purchases or to rack up large debts.

Under the bill, the felony would be punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000 or both.

According to sponsor Sen. Glenn Steil (R-Grand Rapids)there are programs on the Internet that allow computer hackers to gain control of another person's computer. Anything that is stored on a computer is potentially vulnerable to identity thieves, Steil said.

11-29-99