Are any laws or regulations waived for charter schools?
Charter schools by design are exempt from all laws that apply to traditional public schools, with the exception of federal laws that have to do with discrimination. So, all students must be able to attend. Also any state laws or specific state laws that the legislature has made must apply to charter schools. For example, all charter schools must test students enrolled in the school through the state standardized test system that the state has adopted. Additionally, all charter schools must hire highly qualified teachers as mandated by the national "No Child Left Behind Act," as well as all charter schools must abide by local regulations with respect to the facilities in which they operate. So the schools must be safe, and they must have permits from the local building and safety departments for example. So, overall yes, charter schools are exempt and each State Department of Education will have a list of those laws for each school to look at, and for each founder, or potential founder of a charter school to know in order to be able to start a school.
