Executive Order  No. 308: Governor's advisory committee on the implementation of the recently enacted school choice legislation

WHEREAS, the legislature has enacted into law Sections 23 and 85 of Chapter 6 of the Acts of 1991, which provide for a statewide program of school choice: and

WHEREAS, this legislation provides for an important innovation in public education which will:

(a) Open up the possibilities for parents and their children to obtain a quality education in public schools by affording them an enhanced opportunity to attend the public school of their choice:

(b) Serve as a stimulus for school districts throughout the Commonwealth to further examine and strengthen their curriculum, policies and hiring in order to be competitive with other public schools: and

WHEREAS, the initial implementation of the school choice legislation will be important to its success:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, William F. Weld, Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, by virtue of the authority vested in me as supreme executive magistrate, do hereby order the following:

1. An Advisory Committee on School Choice is hereby established to advise the Governor on matters related to the implementation of the school choice legislation:

2. The Advisory Committee is directed to work with the Department of Education, with local school committees, with parent groups and city and town officials to ensure the successful implementation of the school choice program in a manner consistent with its goals and objectives.

3. The Advisory Committee is directed to identify and report to the Governor significant implementation issues which need to be addressed by either the Executive or the Legislature;

4. The Advisory Committee is further directed to examine and make recommendations with regard to:

a. Whether and what regulations should be promulgated to ensure an orderly implementation of the program;

b. How transportation issues should be addressed and monitored during the first year of the program, including whether and how transportation costs should be funded and if so what, if any, financial qualifications and limitations ought to be established.

5. The Committee shall make a preliminary report to the Governor on these matters by June 1, 1991; and

6. The Committee shall be composed of ten (10) members including: the Secretary of Administration and Finance or his designee; the Commissioner of the Department of Education or his designee; one (1) member nominated by the Senate President and one (1) by the Speaker of the House, each of whom shall be parents of children in the public schools of the Commonwealth; one (1) member appointed by each of the Senate and House minority leaders; and four (4) members appointed by the Governor. The Governor shall designate a chair and a vice chair of the Committee.

Given at the Executive Chamber in Boston this 29th day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and ninety-one.

William F. Weld, Governor

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Michael Joseph Connolly

Secretary of the Commonwealth