Key Democrat’s Plan Would Boost Charter Schools

A prominent Democrat in Congress is proposing an alternative to President Bush’s $300 million private-school-choice plan that would instead supplement the budgets of the nation’s charter schools.

Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois is developing a plan that would allow parents of children attending low-performing schools to enroll their children in a charter school—or any other public school—and the federal government would supplement the budget of that school.

The proposal would give Democrats an alternative to voting for a private-school-choice plan and would provide the growing charter school movement a boost, according to...