Advertisement Continue reading the main storyLast week, the Senate passed several bills extending mayoral control — linked with an increase in charters around the state. And on Sunday, Mr. Flanagan issued a statement that again supported mayoral control, but focused primarily on the need for — yes — more charter schools, citing tens of thousands of students on waiting lists. “Denying charters the ability to grow and preventing parents’ ability to choose would shut the door on 20 years of proven gains in academic achievement,” Mr. Flanagan said. The Assembly has passed a two-year extension of mayoral control but linked it to local property tax extenders, a maneuver that Republicans liken to holding such revenue hostage. Since then, the Trump White House has complicated the state’s financial picture; opposition to Mr. Trump has fed talk about the governor’s possible higher political aspirations.

Source: New York Times June 18, 2017 20:48 UTC