Sponsoring Rep. Jim Ferrin said House Bill 136 will cut the number of cars caught in traffic jams around new charter schools and give neighbors a feeling for the school.

"It's good policy to allow these schools to become community schools," Ferrin said.

Other lawmakers complained that a geographic threshold would unfairly lock out students who don't live close enough to a school.

"I see it discriminating against kids like mine," said Rep. Scott Wyatt, a Logan Republican.

But Draper Republican Rep. Greg Hughes said the bill could have alleviated hostility toward the Summit Academy, a new Draper charter school.

"If you exclude people closest to that school, traffic concerns increase and the support of the parents and the community begins to erode," Hughes said.

With a vote of 52-20, representatives sent the bill to the Senate.