Taxpayer unhappiness with increasing property taxes have prompted changes to Wisconsin's school finance system. In the midst of providing property-tax relief, the new tax base structure remains intact and allows school districts to exceed their revenue limits with a majority vote in districtwide elections. Debate is ongoing. (MLH)

Despite pessimism concerning school funding prospects and the deep recession of the early 1980s, this article shows that real school revenues during 1980-1988 continued to increase at substantial rates. The first section discusses school revenues in the context of the country's gross national product and personal income from 1960 to 1980. While…

This booklet discusses past and anticipated legislative activities in school finance, court actions, and research issues. It is divided into three major sections. The first covers the major school finance events of 1976 for selected states, the anticipated major events of 1977, and court actions. The second section covers the dominant issues that…

This booklet outlines a framework for defining and measuring equity in state school finance and tax structures. The framework focuses on two groups: children, who receive educational services, and taxpayers, who pay for those services. Discussed are the different measures of equity for children and taxpayers, the values inherent in those measures,…

In the 1980s, equity concerns will come into conflict with efficiency concerns in school financing. This paper attempts to trace the changing nature of these concerns during the 1970s and to suggest trends for education financing in the 1980s. The first section discusses equity issues related to state school finance reforms and suggests that…

Outlines the trends in educational funding patterns needed to enact educational reform. Local property taxes, state revenues, and federal aid continue to provide the bulk of financing. Includes two tables. (MD)

Argues that standards-based education reform has shifted the focus of school finance from equity to adequacy. Requires an explicit connection between the funding provided to schools and the results produced in terms of student learning. (Contains 19 references.) (MLF)

This article discusses several relatively new issues involved in current debates over education finance policies, notes the research related to them, and summarizes the areas for which additional research is needed. The areas discussed are the impacts of school finance reform, school district financial behavior, the impact of school finance reform…

After being placed on the back burner during the 1980s, school finance is again a major issue. In the 1970s, reliance on property taxes created school district disparities because of unequal tax bases. Legislative reforms enacted between 1971 and 1985 had the following characteristics: school finance formulas were revamped; the state role in…