ERIC Number: ED609665
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2020-Jun
Pages: 94
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
K-12 Education: School Districts Frequently Identified Multiple Building Systems Needing Updates or Replacement. Report to Congressional Addressees. GAO-20-494
Nowicki, Jacqueline M.
US Government Accountability Office
Public school facilities primarily serve an educational role, and they also serve a civic role as voting places and emergency shelters. School districts collectively spend tens of billions of dollars each year on facilities construction needs at the nearly 100,000 K-12 public schools nationwide. About half (an estimated 54 percent) of public school districts need to update or replace multiple building systems or features in their schools, according to the Government Accountability Office's (GAO's) national survey of school districts. The Joint Explanatory Statement accompanying the Department of Defense and Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Act, 2019 and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019 included a provision for GAO to study the condition of public school facilities. This report examines: (1) the common facility condition issues school districts identify in public schools and how they have done so; and (2) school districts' highest priorities for their school facility renovations and updates, and how districts and states fund them. GAO conducted a nationally representative survey of school districts and also surveyed 50 states and the District of Columbia; visited 55 schools in 16 districts across six states, selected for geographic variation and other characteristics; analyzed federal data on school district expenditures for capital construction projects; and interviewed federal, state, district, and school officials.
Descriptors: Public Schools, Educational Facilities, School Districts, Kindergarten, Elementary Secondary Education, Resource Allocation, Educational Facilities Improvement, School Buildings, Accountability, Federal Legislation, Identification, Financial Support, Geographic Regions, Expenditures, School Construction, School Visitation, Public Officials, Administrator Attitudes, Federal Aid, School Security, Information Technology, Hazardous Materials, Charter Schools
US Government Accountability Office. 441 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20548. Tel: 202-512-6000; Web site: http://www.gao.gov
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Legal/Legislative/Regulatory Materials; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Elementary Education; Kindergarten; Primary Education; Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: Policymakers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: US Government Accountability Office
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A