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1 1 (July 19, 2023)

handle is hein.crs/govemgi0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional_______ ~ Research Service Fourth Circuit Says Public Charter Schools Are State Actors, Supreme Court Declines to Weigh In Updated July 19, 2023 On June 14, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (Fourth Circuit) held in Peltier v. Charter Day Schools that a public charter school's dress code policy discriminated against female students on the basis of sex. The court reached this conclusion by finding that public charters are state actors and therefore bound by the Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court denied Charter Day Schools' (CDS) petition to review the Fourth Circuit's opinion. Public charter schools have grown in popularity over the past decade. Public charters are schools that operate within the bounds of a contract (or charter) with a state or local government. Because public charters operate through this separate agreement rather than under the rules and regulations of a school district, they typically have more flexibility to determine curricula and school policies, much like traditional private schools. Despite this additional flexibility, public charters are publicly funded entities that are subject to the performance standards outlined in their charters. This convergence of public and private features has led to confusion as to whether public charters are required to provide students with the same legal protections as a traditional public school or whether they may operate independently of federal and constitutional mandates. Students in traditional public schools are protected by the Constitution because traditional public schools are state actors, entities that perform their functions under and with the appearance of state authority. In contrast, traditional private schools operate with relative independence from the state. If public charters are state actors, they must provide students with the same level of protection as traditional public schools. This Legal Sidebar first provides an overview of the state action doctrine under the Fourteenth Amendment. It then examines the Fourth Circuit's state action analysis in Peltier. The Sidebar concludes by discussing potential implications of the Supreme Court's decision not to review the decision. While Peltier also raises Title IX issues, this Sidebar does not address that topic. Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov LSB10958 CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

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