FL S1470

Renames the Charter School Appeal Commission to the Charter School Commission and expands its role to receive and review applications directly from high-performing charter schools, high-performing charter school systems, and HOPE operators.

Requires charter school sponsors and the commission to deny or recommend denial of applications if the proposed reading curriculum is not grounded in scientifically based reading research.

Establishes new appeal processes allowing sponsors to appeal commission recommendations for approval to the State Board of Education, and applicants to appeal commission recommendations for denial within 30 days.

Changes the application deadline from August 1 to February 1 annually for charter schools to open 18 months later, with sponsors and the commission unable to refuse applications submitted before this date.

Prohibits applicants, owners, presidents, superintendents, principals, governing board members, and their relatives from submitting charter applications for 5 years if a charter is not renewed, terminated, or closes within 1 year of opening; extends the prohibition to 10 years for those convicted of crimes related to charter school operations.