The state House has been holding out for worthy budget goals; House members want to fund teaching assistants and drivers ed at current levels, rather than cut them as the state Senate proposed. Finally, Senate budget negotiators have offered a compromise: They’ll keep the teaching assistants and drivers ed if they can also prohibit school systems from using teacher assistant funds for other purposes, like hiring teachers.

Once again, Senate leaders want to put even more restrictions on conventional public schools, denying them the flexibility that helps good charter schools succeed. Can’t they see that?