HB 604 - Mississippi Failing Schools Recovery Act

• Establishes a charter school program administered by the State Department of Education beginning in the 2011-2012 school year, with the State Board of Education as the chartering authority responsible for approving and overseeing charter schools.

• Requires automatic conversion of failing or at-risk schools placed in the Mississippi Recovery School District to charter status if they fail to improve from the lowest performance level within two years.

• Sets application requirements including submission deadlines (by July 1), operational specifications, governance structure, academic performance measures, and requires charter schools to maintain at least the same percentage of at-risk students as the original school.

• Establishes a three-year initial charter term with renewal options, allows charter revocation for material violations, academic underperformance, or fiscal mismanagement, and provides immunity to the State Board of Education from civil liability.

• Creates the Charter Schools Stimulus Revolving Loan Fund providing up to $100,000 in loans to charter school applicants and schools for startup and renovation costs, with loan repayment requirements over five years.