ACT are lying to you about Charter Schools by comparing Apples with Potatoes and pretending it’s fruit.

The ACT Party flex on Charter Schools is not the amazing win that they seem to think it is.

They are comparing apples with potatoes and pretending it’s fruit!

ACT are leaving out enormous costs to misrepresent the price between Charter schools and State schools.

ACT exclude major costs.

The official factsheet explicitly says:

• Property costs are excluded
• Many services (IT, payroll, etc.) are handled differently and not fully comparable

That’s a big deal:

State schools get buildings and infrastructure funded centrally where as Charter schools may get separate or upfront funding

So the headline “per student” number is not total cost per student.

Start-up and small-school costs distort reality

The document also notes:

• New charter schools receive set-up funding and establishment support
• Small schools can have much higher per-student funding

Example from the same table:

• Small charter schools can get much higher per-student rates (e.g. up to ~$9,000+ or more depending on size)

This is critical:

Early-stage charter schools are often expensive per student
The ACT comparison uses an “average-sized” scenario, not the current reality.

ACT are lying to you about Charter Schools by comparing Apples with Potatoes and pretending it’s fruit.