Plain-English summary
Court splits, affirms Oklahoma high-court ruling by an equally divided Court
This case asked whether privately run charter schools become state actors simply because they contract with Oklahoma to provide free public education, and whether excluding religious charter schools would violate the Free Exercise Clause. The Supreme Court issued a per curiam decision: the judgment of the Oklahoma Supreme Court was affirmed by an equally divided Court, so the lower-court ruling stands.
Why this matters
The case concerns the boundary between public authority and private control in charter schools and the scope of religious-liberty protections when states set rules for publicly funded private schools. A ruling for petitioners could have limited state control claims over private school choices and constrained states’ ability to exclude religious operators; a ruling for respondents would reinforce state authority to treat charter operators’ actions as state action in some contexts and to enforce program rules.
Who may feel it
- Students and families who attend or seek to attend charter schools
- Privately run charter school operators (secular and religious)
- State and local education agencies that authorize or regulate charter schools
- Religious organizations that want to run publicly funded school programs
- Civil-rights and religious-liberty advocates and lawyers
Key questions