ATLANTA (WJBF) — State House lawmakers in Georgia are reviewing Senate Bill 82, which cleared the senate chamber.

The “Local Charter School Authorization and Support Act” would give local school districts power to fund charter schools instead of charter schools relying solely on state funding.

Georgia has around 100 charter schools so far.

New data released by the State Charter Schools Commission of Georgia shows more than 21,000 students are on the charter school wait lists. A recent poll by the Georgia Charter Schools Association said seven out of 10 Georgia voters had favorable views of charter schools in the state.

Advocacy groups and charter schools are pushing lawmakers to cut the red tape and get more funds to keep charter schools from shutting down.

“I am here because we have such incredible demand for seats in our schools. We currently have 4000 for our wait list on our two existing campuses. We are seeking to open more seats and open more campuses but there’s a lot of legislative problems standing in the way,” said Janet Tomko, director of outreach and government affairs, Liberty Classical.

State lawmakers have until Friday, April 4, to approve this bill and any other legislation as the 40-day legislative session comes to close.