Based on a series of state and city case studies published by the Progressive Policy Institute and Education Sector, this report summarizes states' experiences with charter schooling, particularly the role of state charter school laws in shaping a state's charter sector. We identify and examine the areas of the law that have the greatest impact on the characteristics and quality of a state's charter sector and propose what we have found to be the necessary legislative and regulatory changes to promote a charter sector's quality and growth. We also look beyond state charter school laws to how a state's regulatory, political, and educational climate also shapes its charter sector. (Contains 37 endnotes, 2 figures and 1 table.)