http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/05/education/pennsylvania-schools-funding-figh... This might be a crazy idea, but I've wondered for a while how communities would perceive charters if charter schools could only be approved if there is a plan in place to reduce resources at the competing public schools. After all, we aren't in a period of student enrollment growth in most districts, so more students in charters means fewer in public schools. If this is *really* about school choice, then perhaps communities should vote on initiatives worded like: "Do you wish to close public school programs A, B, and C, including the loss of teachers X, Y, and Z, in order to free up resources to start a charter school?" The proverbial cake and eating too certainly aren't coexisting in this economy, so maybe it's best to lay out those details ahead of time.