Or, more precisely, they are trying.
Here are snippets from a report by Howard Fischer at Capitol Media Service that was carried by the AZ Daily Star (tucson.com). Headline: "State senators took the first steps Thursday to giving charter schools access to unused public schools."
Without dissent, the Education Committee approved legislation mandating that if school districts are selling off or leasing no-longer-needed buildings, they cannot refuse to make them available to charter schools that may be competing for the same students.
WTF? Without dissent? Even from the few Dems at that table?
SB 1074 now goes to the full Senate.
The legislation came over the objections of Pima County School Superintendent Linda Arzoumanian, who told the panel in written comments that the question of who has access to the unused buildings should be left to local school boards.
[State Sen. Kelli] Ward’s bill stops short of a proposal by Gov. Doug Ducey to force schools to make not only unused buildings, but also empty classrooms in existing schools, available to charter schools.
But Ducey has yet to explain exactly how that would work, with questions ranging from whether there would be any compensation to the school districts to responsibility for utilities and liability insurance. The governor said those details are still being worked out.
In both cases, though, the issue surrounds efforts by charter schools to get more students.
Ducey, a proponent of “school choice,” has argued more students would go to charter schools if they had the space. That’s why he wants to force public schools to make their classrooms available.
Once the public school facilities get sold off to charters (which include for-profit entities), any expansion of public schools is DOA. But that is exactly what Ducey and his GOPlins want. Let's call "school choice" what it is: a transfer of a public good to a private entity.
We are still doing crazy in AZ.