The office of Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard is reacting to proposal from a City-County Council member about mayor-sponsored charter schools. Democrat Council member Brian Mahern wants to require the schools to pay an annual 3-percent fee, which he says would generate $1.5 million to support charters and other schools. Mahern also wants to require the mayor to give a year's notice before closing down under-performing schools.

Deputy Mayor for Education Jason Kloth says they're open to hearing ideas from the council, but says assessing a fee won't work. Kloth says assessing a fee would create a perverse incentive, meaning it could potentially cause the administration to keep open a school that should be closed, or to open a school they don't have supreme confidence will flourish. Kloth says Mahern's idea of giving notice to schools is on the right track, but he says the year-long requirement would hamstring the administration to keep open a school for a year that should already have been closed.

Mahern's proposal has been assigned to the Community Affairs Committee.