There are no charter schools open yet in New Hampshire or Wyoming. As public schools, charters are not allowed to charge tuition, and they are funded according to enrollment. In other states, like California, additional funds or loans are made available to them. In most states, charters do not receive capital funds for facilities. They are entitled to federal categorical funding for which their students are eligible, such as Title I and Special Education monies.
Federal legislation provides grants to help charters with start-up costs.
Under the law, charter schools must have a fair and open admissions process, conducting outreach and recruitment to all segments of the community they serve. When more students apply than can be accommodated, many charters use a lottery to randomly determine which students are accepted. Many charter schools also have waiting lists. Nationwide, students in charter schools have similar demographic characteristics to students in all public schools. In some states charter schools serve significantly higher percentages of minority or economically disadvantaged students than the traditional public schools.