The California Supreme Court catalyzed school finance litigation with its rulings in the "Serrano v. Priest" cases. The court's required that wealth-related spending differences essentially be eliminated, the legislation required to implement that decision, and the passage of Proposition 13's property tax limitation has resulted in…

Discusses the Serrano vs Priest decision that ruled against the use of property taxes for support of schools in California. (JF)

Presents the full text of the landmark case that found the method of financing public education in California in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. (JF)

Discusses the implications of the Serrano vs Priest decision. (JF)

Court-imposed school finance equalization and tax limitation measures in California have created a centralized system of school finance. Political tensions and conflict that have arisen from this centralized control are discussed, with reference to the Serrano mandate and categorical funding. (SLD)

California is under court order (Serrano v. Priest) to revise the system of financing public elementary and secondary education. Initial analysis had predicted that a shift to statewide taxation would result in greater educational resources at a lower tax cost for lower income families and fewer resources at a higher tax cost for wealthier…