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Parents, Teachers, And Students Gather To Protest Assembly Bill 84

Gathered to Oppose AB84, a proposition that could cut 30% of Charter School funding for non-classroom based education & MANY MORE reasons to oppose. 6.5.2025

(Picture: Protestors gather on Tourney Road in Valencia Friday morning to protest the AB 84 bill, otherwise known as "School Accountability: Office of the Education Inspector General," on May 30, 2025. Habeba Mostafa/ The Signal) Assembly Bill 84 :
(Note: 한글은 따로 올릴겠씁니다. )

Assembly Bill 84 was introduced by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, who represents Torrance and surrounding areas in Southern Los Angeles and Robert Garcia who represents Long Beach area.


The reason given in the bill for its proposal is supposedly in response to the discovery of fraud perpetrated by non-classroom-based charter schools. The example cited in the bill’s fact sheet is a case where 11 defendants were found guilty of a fraud scheme involving nineteen charter schools and totaling $400 million dollars.


Assembly Bill 84 was introduced as, quote, “comprehensive reform to combat fraud” in the charter school system by “improving transparency and accountability among charter school authorizers and charter schools.”


What is interesting though, is that this bill does a lot of things, but most of them are not related to combatting fraud as it says.  


The first change, and just about the only one related to fraud, is that AB 84 mandates comprehensive audits, including fraud detection, be performed for non-classroom-based charter schools. This makes sense because every system needs for internal controls and oversight and accountability within an organization to catch and prevent fraud. But that is where the fraud prevention piece pretty much stops, and the rest of the bill doesn’t seem to be related to fraud prevention in any tangible way.


Next, the bill imposes an oversight fee of 3%, meaning that the district public school governing body – the same governing authority that approves charters in the first place like we just discussed – can withhold 3% of the charter’s revenue for the costs of performing oversight functions like these audits.


The fee is currently 1%, so AB 84 raises it to 3%. The reason for raising it seems to be related to the new audit requirements that must be performed, but charter schools argue that district oversight staff often do very little oversight while still collecting the full fee. They also argue that the people who get paid the 3% are usually located far from the charter school, making oversight minimal or largely symbolic.


The bill goes on to require that public school governing boards must approve all contractor agreements – which means that any contract a charter school enters into with an outside organization—whether for curriculum, staffing, facilities, tech, or services—must be reviewed and formally approved by the school's authorizing board. Charter schools often contract with outside companies for curriculum or online learning platforms, special education services, building leases or facility improvements, management support or back-office operations, technology and software tools, and more.


Under AB 84, these contracts need to be submitted for approval by the authorizing district board. That means charter schools can’t simply sign agreements on their own without outside review. This requirement gives school districts more control over how charter schools operate, especially when it comes to financial and vendor decisions.


But it goes even further, and outright prohibits private religious organizations or schools from serving as public school contractors, meaning that charter schools and traditional public schools would no longer be allowed to hire or partner with any organization that is religiously affiliated — even if the service itself is secular.


This is a stipulation that has no connection whatsoever to fraud or abuse. Under this kind of rule, a charter school could not contract with any group that is a religiously affiliated private school, a faith-based nonprofit or ministry, or a church-run vendor – even if that vendor is providing something neutral like tutoring, counseling, or online learning. Tangible examples of this would be a charter school contracting with a Christian counseling center to provide family mental health services, a homeschool charter reimbursing a family for taking a class at a private religious school, partnering with a faith-based music program even if the curriculum is secular, or hiring a religiously affiliated online platform for foreign language, Bible as literature, or philosophy classes. (Read more from here: https://www.thecaliforniaconversation.com/articles/assembly-bill-84)


MORE REASONS TO OPPOSE AB84 : see resources and news below.

By Facts, Law, Truth & Justice (FLTJ)


Usher in AB84: “Comprehensive Charter School Reform”

Approximately 100 pages in length, this “comprehensive reform” will do numerous things to California charter schools and the small businesses that support them to impede their already bare-bones operations in order to exterminate them, forcing all students to turn to California’s dismal public school options. Here are just a few:


1. Narrow and Increase Requirements for Charter School Authorizations

  • Broaden bases for school districts to deny charter petition.

  • Will allow districts to deny a petition if approving them would “jeopardize the district's fiscal health,” which is not defined (of course).


2. Restrict “Independent Study” Options

  • “Independent study” programs allow students to learn outside a traditional classroom, often remotely, and are common for homeschooling, alternative education, or during emergencies like pandemics.

  • AB84 will limit funding depending on classroom attendance (see No. 5).

  • Impose more and rigorous rules around how independent study programs operate, including documentation, instructional minutes, attendance verification.


3. Increase Cost, Scope, and Frequency of Financial and Performance Audits.

  • More frequent audits.

  • More data on pupils: enrollment, residency, ratios, funding allocations, identify relationships with related entities with proper disclosure and consolidation in financial statement, corrective actions or plans, etc.

  • More expensive (raised pricing from 1% to 3%, paid for by charter schools).

  • Must be handed over to the California Department of Education to publish to “promote transparency and inform policy decisions.”

    • They want your children in The System.


4. Standardized Reporting Templates

  • Force superintendents to use the State’s standardized (digital) templates when reporting on teacher misassignments, vacancies, and other staffing issues.


5. More Rigorous Funding Requirements

  • Introduce a tiered funding model (70%, 85%, or 100%) based on criteria like spending on teachers, instructional services, and student demographics.

  • Reduce funding to charter schools with less than 75% in-person instructional time up to 30%, or approximately $4,500/child.

    • “Instructional time” refers to the time students spend directly receiving instruction from a teacher in a school setting.

    • A typical school week has 30 hours of scheduled instructional time. 75% of that is 22.5 hours. Therefore, charters that do not force their children to sit in a classroom for 22.5 or more hours per weeks, will risk losing even more funds.

    • Many children in charter schools physically cannot attend school for that many hours, whether for medical (e.g. exceptional needs, trauma, mental health issues) or logistical reasons (commute, working parents) and cannot meet this requirement even if they wanted to.


6. Restrict Contract Terms and Negotiations

  • Prohibit religious contractors or vendors from servicing charter schools.

  • Prohibit free-market negotiations and service providing. Fees must be flat and not based on revenue.

  • Stricter regulations on vendor contracts and educational enrichment activities.


7. Mandatory Credentialing for Teachers and Staff

  • Requires teachers, service providers, and administrators to hold valid state credentials or permits.

    • While this may seem like a good idea, many charter school families are running from bad experiences with public school teachers. We do not want teachers who have been indoctrinated by the CTA to be teaching our kids.

    • Instead, many charter schools employ experts in various subject matters, like music, art, engineering, design. So, for example, your children could be taught space travel by an uncredentialed former NASA astronaut, or music by a philharmonic conductor. Under AB84 that would not be allowed.


8. Increase Student-to-Teacher Ratios.

9. Overburden and Shut Down Charter Schools.

  • See 1-8, above.


10. Overburden and Shut Down the Small Businesses that Support Charter Schools.

  • See 1-9, above.

  • Note: this affects EVERY child in the State of California. Charter school children are not the only children who use:


    College Preparatory Programs

    These programs focus on academic rigor and preparing students for 4-year universities.

    • Examples:

      • Advanced Placement (AP) courses

      • Dual enrollment with community colleges

      • AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination)


    STEM/STEAM-Focused Programs

    Charter schools often specialize in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics to meet workforce demands.

    • Examples:

      • Project Lead the Way (PLTW)

      • Robotics and coding curriculum (e.g., VEX, Arduino)

      • Integrated science and math project-based learning (PBL)


    Arts Integration or Performing Arts Programs

    Some charter schools emphasize the fine and performing arts alongside academics.

    • Focus Areas:

      • Visual arts, theater, music, and dance

      • Arts-integrated curriculum (academic subjects taught through arts)


    Montessori or Waldorf-Inspired Programs

    Used especially at the elementary level to support child-led and holistic learning.

    • Features:

      • Mixed-age classrooms

      • Emphasis on hands-on, experiential learning

      • Social-emotional development


    Language Immersion or International Baccalaureate (IB)

    Charter schools may offer world language immersion or globally recognized curricula.

    • Types:

      • Spanish, Mandarin, or French immersion

      • IB Primary, Middle, or Diploma Programmers


    Classical Education Programs

    These emphasize traditional liberal arts, including grammar, logic, and rhetoric.

    • Examples:

      • Great Books curriculum

      • Socratic dialogue

      • Latin language instruction

    I

    Independent Study / Personalized Learning Programs

    Designed for homeschool families or students needing flexible schedules.

    • Used by:

      • Online or hybrid charter schools

      • Non-classroom-based programs like those managed by Inspire, Compass, or Summit Learning

    • Components:

      • Online platforms (Edgenuity, APEX, Canvas)

      • Regular check-ins with credentialed teachers


    Career and Technical Education (CTE)

    Charters offering hands-on career pathways in high-demand fields.

    • Pathways May Include:

      • Healthcare (CNA, medical assistant)

      • Information Technology

      • Automotive or construction trades


    Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) and Trauma-Informed Models

    Especially in urban charter schools focused on underserved populations.

    • Incorporates:

      • Restorative justice practices

      • Daily advisory periods

      • SEL curriculum like Second Step or CASEL-aligned programs


    Military or Discipline-Focused Programs

    A few charter schools adopt a military-style or high-discipline approach.

    • Features:

      • Uniforms

      • Leadership training

      • Physical fitness requirements


WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW RIGHT NOW and TAKE ACTION :

“AB 84 doesn’t fix a loophole, it doubles down on a funding system that already underfunds independent study students. It punishes schools that are fully compliant and high-performing just because students don’t sit in a classroom every day. And it targets a model of education that prioritizes parent involvement, the very thing our state has always said it supports.”— Windi Elklund,

ACTION TO TAKE: CALL, EMAIL(One click campaign) AND SHARE !


  1. One Click Action Campaign: https://oneclickpolitics.global.ssl.fastly.net/messages/edit?promo_id=23664


  2. Call your Assembly member to register your opposition and tell them to vote “NO” or at the very least abstain if AB84 comes to floor vote.

    1. ⁠https://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov⁠


  3. Call these “moveable middle” Assemblymembers:

    1. David Alvarez 916 319 2080

    2. Jasmeet Baines 916 319 2035

    3. Mike Gipson 916 319 2065

    4. Jacqui Irwin 916 319 2042

    5. Maggy Krell 916 319 2006

    6. Sharon Quirk-Silva 916 319 2067

    7. James Ramos 916 319 2045

    8. Rhodesia Ransom 916 319 2013

    9. Pilar Schiavo 916 319 2040

    10. Esmerelda Soria 916 319 2027

    11. Avelino Valencia 916 319 2068

    12. Chris Ward 916 319 2078


  4. Call your Chamber of Commerce. Share this article. Explain how this will run numerous small business out of business. Ask them to submit a formal opposition to AB84.

    1. https://advocacy.calchamber.com/resources/local-chambers/lookup/


  5. Call your Senator to register your opposition and tell them to vote “NO” or at the very least abstain if AB84 comes to floor vote.

    1. ⁠https://findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov⁠

    2. No it is not too early to do so. If we put enough pressure before the Assembly vote, the Senate can call the Assembly and tell them to kill the bill and not let it go to the Senate.


  6. Call Gavin to register your opposition and tell them to veto AB84 if it passes out of the Legislature.

    1. ⁠https://www.gov.ca.gov/contact/⁠

    2. No it is not too early to do so. If we put enough pressure on Gavin, he could try and kill it before it gets to his desk to avoid the controversy.


  7. BONUS ROUNDS: One-Click Campaigns:

    1. ⁠https://chartercenter.quorum.us/campaign/120151/⁠

    2. ⁠https://oneclickpolitics.global.ssl.fastly.net/messages/edit?promo_id=23664⁠

    3. ⁠https://www.stopab84.com⁠

    4. ⁠https://www.change.org/p/stopthemandate-help-stop-the-unconstitutional-mandate-being-forced-on-healthcare-workers-teachers-law-enforcement-firefighters-county-city-and-state-community-members-and-private-industry-workers/u/33523020⁠

    5. https://www.veeto.app/email/template/send/oppose-ab-84-protect-charter-8cen


  8. SHARE THIS SUBSTACK


RESOURCES & NEWS ON AB84:


AB 84 in the news

 
 
 

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