Background/Footnotes: In 1998, the state enacted Senate Bill 220, a weak charter school bill to create up to 21 charters statewide. The number of charters allowed in each district varies, depending on the population. Districts may have additional charter schools that specifically serve at-risk students. Local school boards may grant charters following an initial review by the state committee on charter schools. Charter schools do not receive an automatic waiver from local and state laws, rules, and regulations.[1]

In 1997, Assembly Bill 571 was introduced to permit the creation of voucher schools. Voucher schools would have been state-certified, private, nonsectarian schools that could not charge tuition or fees beyond the voucher for disabled or low-income students. The bill died in committee. During the 1999 session, choice advocates introduced A.B. 507 and Senate Bill 385, which also would have allowed the establishment of voucher schools. These schools would have had to be certified by the state as in the 1997 legislation. Students would have been able to opt out of religious activities. Both bills died in committee.[2]

S.B. 235, which would have authorized vouchers for low-income students in failing schools, was introduced during the 2001 legislative session but did not pass. As in earlier legislation, the bill would have established voucher schools authorized by the Nevada Department of Education. The voucher would have been worth the cost of the private school's tuition or the district's per-pupil expenditure, whichever was less.[3]

In 2001, Governor Kenny Guinn signed S.B. 399, which stipulates that classes offered on-line by charter schools must be equivalent to what is provided by the district. The bill clarifies that charter schools may not be "for-profit" and that home schools and existing public schools may not convert to charter status. It also guarantees the right of school employees to bargain collectively.[4]

Assemblyman Ronald L. Knecht (R-40) introduced legislation in 2003 that would have allowed home-school students to participate in public-school athletic and scholastic programs. The bill, A.B. 311, was approved by the Committee on Education but no further action was taken.[5]

S.B. 376, introduced in the 2003 session, would have granted vouchers to students living in poverty and attending low-performing schools. No action was taken prior to adjournment.[6]

On April 3, 2003, the Senate passed a school choice bill, S.B. 254, by a vote of 13 to 8. The bill would have allowed parents to apply to send their child to a public school in another district. No action was taken in the House.[7]

In 2003, the governor signed S.B. 1, which requires school districts to provide intradistrict school choice for students attending schools designated in need of improvement under the No Child Left Behind Act.[8]

In March 2005, Senator Barbara K. Cegavske introduced S.B. 223, which would create a voucher program for the state.[9] Students who attend a school in need of improvement for three or more years or who are from low-income families would be eligible. The bill stalled in the Senate Finance Committee.

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