Opinion ID: 2321064
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Original Jurisdiction Over Section 9-106(b) Waiver Applications

Text: The City Board and the Unions contend that, because the word appeal appears in Section 9-106(b), the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners has original jurisdiction over all Section 9-106(b) waiver applications; if the application is denied, the City Board's decision may then be appealed to the State Board of Education. The City Board argues that this approach is consistent with the provisions of COMAR 13A.01.05.01, et seq., which govern the appeals process from final decisions of a county board of education or the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners to the State Board. [17] Whether the local or State Board of Education has original jurisdiction over waiver applications submitted pursuant to Section 9-106(b) of the Education Article requires us to interpret Sections 9-106 and 9-108(a) of the Education Article. Section 9-106(a) provides that public charter schools shall comply with the provisions of law and regulation governing other public schools. Public schools are subject to regulations promulgated at both the State and the local level; Sections 2-205 of the Education Article vests the State Board of Education with the power to set forth bylaws, rules and regulations for the administration of public schools, while Sections 4-108(4) and 4-303(d)(1) permit local boards of education to [a]dopt, codify, and make available to the public bylaws, rules, and regulations not inconsistent with State law, for the conduct and management of the [local] public schools. Section 9-106(b) provides that [s]ubject to subsection (c) of this section, a waiver of the requirements under subsection (a) of this section may be sought through an appeal to the State Board. COMAR 13A.01.01.02-1, Waivers From Regulations, governs waiver applications implicating regulations promulgated by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 2-205 of the Education Article, and provides in pertinent part: The head of an educational institution or program, including an institution of higher education, or the local superintendent of schools on behalf of a school or school system, shall file a waiver request with the State Superintendent of Schools. The request shall include a description of the desired outcome and an explanation of why the waiver is necessary and justifiable under the circumstances. Although normally the term appeal means [a] proceeding undertaken to have a decision reconsidered by a higher authority, Black's Law Dictionary 105 (8th Ed.2004), Section 9-106, which governs the waiver process, cannot provide for local boards of education to entertain waiver provisions of State laws and regulations, because, as the City Board conceded at oral argument before this Court, local school boards have no authority to waive State laws and regulations, only local regulations. This is because the State Board of Education has primary jurisdiction over all State educational provisions. See Clinton v. Bd. of Educ. of Howard County, 315 Md. 666, 675-678, 556 A.2d 273, 277-279 (1989) (holding that the State Board of Education has primary jurisdiction over question regarding the interpretation and application of provisions of the Education Article); Hubbard, 305 Md. at 786, 506 A.2d at 630 (Primary jurisdiction `is a judicially created rule designed to coordinate the allocation of functions between courts and administrative bodies.'), quoting Md.-Nat'l Capital Park & Planning Comm'n v. Wash. Nat'l Arena, 282 Md. 588, 601, 386 A.2d 1216, 1225-26 (1978). The legislative history of the Maryland Public Schools Act of 2003 also reflects this tenet. In 1997, the State Board of Education published its Guidelines For Use By Local School Systems In Considering Charter School Applications, which recognized that different entities at the federal, State and local level operate to govern public charter schools: Public charter schools are subject to any federal, state, and local policies, regulations, and statutes that affect traditional elementary and secondary public schools unless the policies, regulations, and statutes are waived by the governing authority. For example, local education authorities may waive certain local policies, procedures, regulations, or practices for any public school under their jurisdiction. The State Board of Education and State Superintendent of Schools may waive certain policies, procedures, or regulations, and they also have some flexibility to waive certain federal regulations under the federal Education Flexibility Act. Waivers from local regulations could be accomplished as part of the negotiated charter, while other waivers may be obtained from the proper authorities in cooperation with the local board. Guidelines For Use By Local School Systems In Considering Charter School Applications 1, 5 (July 1997). In 1999, A Task Force on Public Charter Schools reported on its findings, which incorporated the suggestion of the State Board's Guidelines, subsequently leading to the genesis two public charter school bills were proposed; House Bill 116, which incorporated the recommendations of the Task Force, and Senate Bill 761, which differed substantially in the treatment of waivers. Senate Bill 761 simply provided that [A] WAIVER OF HEALTH OR SAFETY REGULATIONS FOR THE PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL FACILITY MAY NOT BE GRANTED, whereas House Bill 116 provided in Section 9-108: (A) (1) THE STATE BOARD MAY GRANT A WAIVER TO A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL FROM SPECIFIC STATE EDUCATION REGULATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS. (2) THE COUNTY BOARD MAY GRANT A WAIVER TO A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL FROM SPECIFIC LOCAL EDUCATIONAL REGULATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS. (B) A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL MAY BE GRANTED A WAIVER UNDER SUBSECTION (A) OF THIS SECTION IF THE SCHOOL DEMONSTRATES THAT A WAIVER WILL ADVANCE THE EDUCATIONAL GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE SCHOOL. (C) THE STATE BOARD OR A COUNTY BOARD MAY NOT WAIVE A REGULATION OR REQUIREMENT PERTAINING TO THE CIVIL RIGHTS OR THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF A STUDENT. Senate Bill 761, Educational Opportunity and Family Investment Program Act of 1999, (Regular Session 1999) & House Bill 116, Education  Public Charter Schools (Regular Session 1999). Neither bill was enacted. Subsequently, in 2003, Senate Bill 75, the Public Charter School Act, was introduced, Section 9-109 of which provided that: (A) (1) THE STATE BOARD MAY GRANT A WAIVER TO A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL FROM SPECIFIC STATE EDUCATION REGULATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS. (2) THE COUNTY BOARD MAY GRANT A WAIVER TO A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL FROM SPECIFIC LOCAL EDUCATION REGULATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS. (B) A PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL MAY BE GRANTED A WAIVER UNDER SUBSECTION (A) OF THIS SECTION IF THE SCHOOL DEMONSTRATES THAT A WAIVER WILL ADVANCE THE EDUCATIONAL GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE SCHOOL. (C) THE STATE BOARD OR A COUNTY BOARD MAY NOT WAIVE A REGULATION OR REQUIREMENT RELATING TO THE CIVIL RIGHTS OR THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF A STUDENT. Senate Bill 75, The Public Charter School Act (Third Reading, Mar. 31, 2003). Between the first and final reading, the waiver provisions were moved to Section 9-106 and amended to provide that a waiver of the requirements under subsection (a) of this section may be sought through an appeal to the State Board. Section 9-106(b). Prior to the passage of Senate Bill 75, Delegate John R. Leopold asked the Attorney General to opine on the appeal language found in Section 9-106(b), and the Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Israel responded: Although [Section 9-106(b)] refers to taking an appeal to the State Board, there is no reference to a public authority, such as a county board of education, from which an appeal would be taken.    It is generally provided that a public charter school is to comply with the provision of laws and regulations which govern other public schools. However, subject to certain exceptions, a waiver of these requirements may be sought through an appeal to the State Board. You have asked whether the County Board must first rule or whether the State Board considers the matters first. A review of the legislative history reveals that the provision applying the laws and regulations which govern public schools and which may be waived by an appeal to the State Board was adopted by the Senate on the recommendation of the Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee. The Committee's floor report. . . [makes] no reference in the waiver provision to the public authority from which an appeal is taken. Although Baltimore City and 15 of the 23 counties have home rule, the State has preempted the field of education. Thus, the only law on education is State law and the reference in Senate Bill 75 to a waiver of laws must necessarily mean State law. Under current State law, the State Board of Education and respective county boards of education have the authority to adopt regulations. Thus, the reference in Senate Bill 75 to a waiver of regulations would include State board regulations as well as county board regulations. Although disputes over county board regulations are decided by the County Superintendent of Schools with an appeal to the County Board and then the State Board, it has been understood that disputes concerning State statutes and State Board regulations of general application are matters to be decided by the State Board. A County Board would not have a role in deciding on the requested waiver. Letter from Richard E. Israel, Assistant Attorney General, to John R. Leopold, House Delegate (April 25, 2003) (emphasis added) (citations omitted). Although we take into consideration the advice of the Assistant Attorney General, we are not bound by it, nor do we afford it any enhanced weight. Pub. Serv. Comm'n of Md. v. Wilson, 389 Md. 27, 57 n. 18, 882 A.2d 849, 867 n. 18 (2005); Drew v. First Guar. Mortgage Corp., 379 Md. 318, 332, 842 A.2d 1, 9 (2003). We think it is clear, nevertheless, based upon the dichotomy of State and local regulators governing public charter schools today, and having explored the legislative history of the Maryland Public Charter School Act, that waiver applications submitted pursuant to Section 9-106(b) implicating State law or regulations must be submitted directly to the State Board of Education; the word appeal in Section 9-106(b) is, then, a misnomer. See Murrell v. Mayor & City Council of Baltimore, 376 Md. 170, 185, 829 A.2d 548, 557 (2003), quoting Kant v. Montgomery County, 365 Md. 269, 274, 778 A.2d 384, 387 (2001) (`Although § 12-302(a) refers to a circuit court exercising appellate jurisdiction in reviewing the decision of an administrative agency or local legislative body, the word appellate is a misnomer in this context'). Because this case implicates waivers of Sections 4-103(a), 6-201, and 9-108(a), which are State laws, the City Board had no authority to consider any application.