No later than June 30th of a public charter school’s 4th year of operation under a 5-year contract, the Commission shall issue a performance report for that school which complies with Title 20-A, section 2411, subsection 3. The report shall include information regarding the charter school’s performance to date and provide notice of any weakness which might be detrimental to school renewal. The charter school must be given the opportunity to respond. No later than September 30th of a public charter school’s 5th year, the governing board seeking renewal shall submit a renewal application to the Commission. A renewal application may not be submitted before the charter school has been issued the school performance report pursuant to Section 2. Renewal decisions will be based on merit and objective evidence of the school’s performance over the term of the charter contract in accordance with the Performance Framework developed by the Commission pursuant to Title 20-A, section 2409 and set forth in the charter contract. The Commission shall provide renewal application guidance at the time it issues the school performance report under section 2 of this rule. The guidance shall describe the application process and shall include or refer specifically to the criteria and standards that will guide the renewal decision.