Montana: House Republicans endorse three school choice bills - one to authorize charter schools, another to create a modest tax credit scholarship program and a third to create an education savings account program for students with disabilities (Independent Record). A day later, several defect on the charter school bill and it goes down - though maybe not permanently - on a 50-49 vote (Billings Gazette). The tax credit scholarship bill clears the Senate (The Missoulian).

Florida. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., introduces legislation to create a national tax credit scholarship program (redefinED). A parent trigger bill that was defeated last year in a dramatic tie vote is back this year (redefinED).

Colorado: Two bills to expand private school choice through tax credits go down to defeat (Ed News Colorado). A student is in limbo after his mother withdraws him from a charter school to send him back to his zoned district school but the district says it's too late (9News.com).

Arizona: Charter schools would have to follow state purchasing laws and those that use management companies would have to post salary information under a bill filed in the wake of a newspaper investigation (Arizona Republic). Lawmakers nix a bill that would have required mailers be sent to parents informing them of school choice programs (Arizona Daily Sun).

New Mexico: Public schools, including charter schools, would be barred from contracting with private entities under a bill supported by critics who fear "a Trojan horse-type assault on the state to divert public education funds" (Santa Fe New Mexican).

Idaho: Lawmakers consider equitable funding for charter schools (Idaho Reporter).

Washington: The state public schools superintendent asks legislators to put charters under his watch, a move that conflicts with the new law voters recently approved that calls for a separate supervisory panel (King5).

California: The San Francisco school district triples the rent for charter schools, after charging less than other districts for years, prompting an outcry from some charters (San Francisco Chronicle). (more…)

Florida: Tony Bennett is selected the state's new education commissioner (redefinED). He tells reporters afterwards that he champions school choice first and foremost because of the social justice component (redefinED). A new group headed by T. Willard Fair,  co-founder of the state's first charter school, aims to create a pipeline of black executives and entrepreneurs to help lead private and charter schools (redefinED). The Miami-Dade school district ranks No. 10 in the country for school choice, according to a new report from Brookings (redefinED). A Catholic school in Tampa is at the heart of a University of Notre Dame project to revitalize Catholic schools, particularly for Hispanic students. (redefinED).

Louisiana: Voucher parents are worried in the wake of the legal ruling that puts the program in limbo (advertiser.com). Gov. Bobby Jindal makes a pitch for vouchers at a Brookings Institution event in Washington D.C. (Huffington Post).

Washington: More than 150 teachers, parents and administrators attend a charter school conference in the wake of the successful passage of a charter school ballot initiative (Tacoma News Tribune). (Full disclosure: The conference was sponsored by the Washington Charter School Research Center, which was founded by Jim and Fawn Spady. Fawn Spady chairs the board of directors at the American Center for School Choice, which co-hosts this blog.)

Michigan: The education adviser to Gov. Rick Snyder presents the governor's sweeping public school choice proposal to business and education leaders (Grand Rapids Business Journal). (more…)

Florida: Former Indiana education leader Tony Bennett is one of three finalists for the education commissioner job in Florida, with the state Board of Education scheduled to make a decision Wednesday (redefinED). U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., says in a major speech that expanding school choice is a key to revitalizing the middle class and proposes a federal tax credit scholarship (redefinED). Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist tells the Tampa Tribune he was wrong to support an expansion of vouchers (redefinED), then, in a move many expected as he positions himself for another run at governor, signs paperwork to change his party registration to Democrat (Tampa Bay Times). (Image from healthystate.org)

Louisiana: U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan reiterates his opposition to private school vouchers during a visit to New Orleans (Fox 8 New Orleans). A district judge's ruling on the statewide voucher program also threatens an initiative to provide students more choice by course (New Orleans Times Picayune).

Texas: School districts gear up to fight lawmakers on vouchers (Dallas Morning News). Education commissioner Michael Williams urges charter schools to better inform lawmakers about their work (Dallas Morning News).

Arkansas: A crowded education agenda for lawmakers next year is likely to include school choice proposals, including tax credit scholarships and expansion of charter schools (Arkansas Business Online).

Washington: A new parents group forms to fight the formation of charter schools in the wake of the state's recently passed charter school ballot initiative (Seattle Times.)

North Carolina: The state board of education postpones a vote on rules that would make it tougher for virtual charter schools to open (Associated Press).

California: An appeals court overturns a ruling that potentially gave charter school operators in Los Angeles access to more classroom space (Los Angeles Times).

Connecticut: The Hartford school system gets $5 million from the Gates Foundation to strengthen its relationship with two charter school networks (Hartford Courant). The foundation distributed $25 million to seven cities nationwide (Washington Post).

Indiana: Seven more charter schools are coming to Indianapolis, more than half as many as Mayor Greg Ballard approved in his first five years (Indianapolis Business Journal).

Tennessee: High-performing district schools and charter schools in Nashville offer an opportunity for educators to learn what works, what doesn't (The Tennessean).

New York: Black pastors in Buffalo support the conversion of low-performing schools into charter schools (Buffalo News).