School Bd. of Osceola County v. UCP of Fl., 5D04-1140.

Decision Date22 April 2005
Docket NumberNo. 5D04-1140.,5D04-1140.
Citation905 So.2d 909
PartiesSCHOOL BOARD OF OSCEOLA COUNTY, Appellant, v. UCP OF CENTRAL FLORIDA, Appellee.
CourtFlorida District Court of Appeals

Usher Larry Brown, Suzanne D'Agresta and Erin J. O'Leary of Brown, Garganese, Weiss & D'Agresta, P.A., Orlando, for Appellant.

Michael Olenick and Stacey K. Sutton of Carlton Fields, West Palm Beach, for Appellee.

Jennifer S. Blohm of Meyer and Brooks, P.A., Tallahassee, Amici Curiae, The Florida School Boards Association, Inc.

PETERSON, J.

The School Board of Osceola County, ("School Board"), appeals the Florida State Board of Education's, ("State Board"), reversal of the School Board's denial of United Cerebral Palsy of Central Florida's, ("UCP"), application for the establishment of a charter school.

Following the procedures established in section 1002.33(6), Florida Statutes (2003), UCP submitted its application for the establishment of a charter school to the School Board. Using a system of ratings, School Board officials awarded the application a score of 51.8 points, with 60 points being the maximum awardable. The School Board conducted a hearing, but denied the application because (1) approval would further dilute the capital funding of all new and existing charter schools under the current funding scheme, and (2) UCP's intent to fund capital expenditures from operating funds would further reduce the already low operating budgets of new and existing charter schools in the county, resulting in each student receiving less of an education.

UCP timely appealed the decision to the State Board and the Charter School Appeals Commission, ("Commission"), acting under the authority of section 1002.33(6), unanimously recommended approval of the charter school application. The State Board accepted the Commission's recommendation that the denial of the application based upon perceived inadequate charter school capital outlay funding did not constitute statutory good cause pursuant to section 1002.33.

The School Board then initiated this appeal but requested transfer to the circuit court because the School Board believed that court had jurisdiction rather than a district court of appeal.

JURISDICTION

Section 1002.33(6), Florida Statutes (2003), provides that the State Board of Education's final order following a review of a District School Board's decision is a final action subject to judicial review, but does not specify the court having jurisdiction of the review.

Article V, § 4(b)(2) of the Florida Constitution provides that "District Courts of Appeal shall have the power of review of administrative action, as prescribed by general law," but Article V, § 5 also parrots this language to place the power of direct review of administrative actions in the circuit courts. These provisions leave to the Florida Legislature the manner in which appeals may be taken from administrative agencies.

The Legislature has taken this cue from the constitution and enacted a general law in charter school applications by providing in section 1002.33(6), Florida Statutes (2002), that the State Board's review of a District School Board's decision is a final action subject to judicial review. By not specifying the court in which the judicial review is to take place, the Legislature has generated the quandary faced by the litigants and this court in determining which court, circuit or district, is to review the State Board's decision. Initially, we observe that the appeal provisions of Chapter 120 of the Florida Statutes, the "Administrative Procedure Act," are not applicable because section 1002.33(6)(c) specifically exempts decisions rendered by the State Board from that act. The parties to this appeal agree that the avenue of appeal is not provided by chapter 120, notwithstanding the inclusion in the State Board's final order that judicial review of its order is available pursuant to section 120.68, Florida Statutes, a subsection of the Administrative Procedure Act.

In the absence of legislative selection of the proper forum, we turn to the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure, but those rules do not precisely prescribe the court in which Charter School decisions are to be reviewed. Rule 9.030(b)(1)(C), prescribing the appellate jurisdiction of district courts and rule 9.030(c)(1)(C), prescribing the appellate jurisdiction of circuit courts, mirror the language that each of the courts "shall review, by appeal . . . administrative action if provided by general law." As stated earlier, the Legislature has enacted a general law establishing review by appeal, but omitted specifying the appropriate forum.

If analysis of the appellate rules stopped at this point, one could preliminarily conclude that both the circuit court and district court would have jurisdiction under the rules to entertain review of the State Board's decision. However, a concurrent jurisdiction conclusion is not practical. Additionally, if one were to file an appeal with the circuit court, still another appeal would be allowable to the district court pursuant to rule 9.030(b)(2)(B) which prescribes jurisdiction in the district courts to review "final orders of circuit courts acting in their review capacity." Surely, the Legislature did not intend to create a third tier of review from a local school board decision; the third appeal would be possible if we accepted the School Board's argument.

In Orange Ave. Charter School v. St. Lucie County School Bd., 763 So.2d 531 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000) review denied, 786 So.2d 1187 (Fla.2001), a charter school sought administrative review of an order of the county school board denying renewal of the school's charter to serve at-risk students. The State Board rejected the school board's initial determination and remanded the case for further consideration. On remand, the school board conducted a full evidentiary public hearing in which it again decided not to renew the school's charter.1 The school board's subsequent denial after remand constituted a final action for purposes of review.2 Notably, the charter school filed a direct appeal of the school board's ruling with the Fourth District Court of Appeal, not with the circuit court. Admittedly, the district court's opinion did not address the jurisdictional issue that is raised here. Similarly, in School Bd. of Nassau County v. Arline, 408 So.2d 706 (Fla. 1st DCA 1982) affirmed on other grounds, 480 U.S. 273, 107 S.Ct. 1123, 94 L.Ed.2d 307 (1987),

the district court heard a direct appeal from the school board regarding a final order issued by the state board. Again, that court's opinion did not discuss the court's jurisdiction.

Other authorities support a district court's jurisdiction over this matter. See § 23.2 Phillip J. Padovano, Florida Appellate Practice 380 (noting that administrative decisions of state agencies are appealable either to the supreme court or to the district court of appeal). For purposes of appeal, there is no substantive difference between the final action taken by the State Board here and the final action taken by the St. Lucie school board3 in Orange Ave or the final order issued by the state board in School Bd. of Nassau County.

Finally, the Orange Ave. decision was decided in the year 2000, giving the Legislature an opportunity to make its intent known if it differed with those decisions in which the district court entertained jurisdiction in charter school decisions.

The School Board cites Eckert v. Bd. of Comm. of N. Broward Hosp. Dist., 720 So.2d 1151 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998), in support of its argument that jurisdiction is properly in the circuit court. In Eckert, a physician petitioned the Fourth District Court of Appeal by writ of certiorari seeking review of a hospital district's decision to suspend his staff privileges. The Eckert court held that it lacked jurisdiction over the matter and transferred the case to the circuit court because it considered the hospital district to be purely local in nature, in that it was a special taxing district created by special law that operated wholly within the county. The court noted that "if an administrative agency does not qualify as a state agency under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), it is considered to be a local administrative body whose decisions are reviewable by certiorari in the circuit court." We do not view Eckert as dispositive in the instant case because it was an appeal from a local hospital district rather than a state-wide agency; to-wit: the Florida State Board of Education.

The preceding analysis leads us to the conclusion that the district courts and not the circuit courts have jurisdiction to review the final decisions described in section 1002.33(6)(d), Florida Statutes (2003).

REQUIREMENT OF GOOD CAUSE

UCP's application for a charter school may be denied by the School Board for "good cause." § 1002.33(6)(b)3, Fla. Stat. (2003). Unfortunately, the term "good cause" is not defined in the charter school legislation. The reason given by the School Board to justify its denial of the application and qualify as good cause was inadequate charter school capital funding. However, both the Commission and the State Board agreed that the School Board's reason did not constitute the statutory "good cause" that would support denial of the charter school application.4 The State Board determined that the School Board did not have good cause to reject the charter school application because the applicant met all the statutory requirements for an approval as established by section 1002.33(6). The School Board disagrees with this interpretation and argues that good cause may be based upon factors other than those specified by the statute.

Under Florida law, each school board is charged with fiscal responsibility over all free public schools, including charter schools, within their district and must ensure that all children are provided with adequate educational facilities and instructional materials.5...

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7 cases
  • SCHOOL BD. OF OSCEOLA v. State Bd. of Educ.
    • United States
    • Florida District Court of Appeals
    • April 22, 2005
    ...overruled OCSB's decision. OCSB has appealed those three cases to this Court. School Board of Osceola County v. UCP of Cent. Fla., No. 04-1140, 905 So.2d 909, 2005 WL 924317 (Fla. 5th DCA Apr. 20, 2005), was recently affirmed. However, School Board of Osceola County v. Academies of Excellen......
  • Imhotep-Nguzo Saba Chart. v. Dept. of Educ.
    • United States
    • Florida District Court of Appeals
    • February 7, 2007
    ...is supported by competent, substantial evidence in the record, the final order should be affirmed. See Sch. Bd. of Osceola County v. UCP of Cent. Fla., 905 So.2d 909 (Fla. 5th DCA), review denied, 914 So.2d 954 (Fla.2005). In the instant case, the record supports the State Board of Educatio......
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    • Florida District Court of Appeals
    • October 29, 2008
    ...is entitled to great deference and will be approved on appeal unless it is clearly erroneous); Sch. Bd. of Osceola County v. UCP of Cent. Fla., 905 So.2d 909 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005) (finding that where the State Board of Education's determination of an appeal of the approval or denial of a char......
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