Background/Context: Dealing mostly in aggregate statistics that mask important regional variations, scholars often assume that district property taxation and the resource disparities this approach to school funding creates are deeply rooted in the history of American education. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study: This article…

In June 1978, California voters approved Proposition 13, limiting property taxes to 1 percent of a property's market value and limiting the property's growth in market value to 2 percent per year. The immediate effect of the limitations was to reduce property tax revenues by $7 billion, of which $3.1 billion would have gone to the schools. The…

In November 1972, electorates in California, Colorado, Michigan, and Oregon decisively rejected consitutional amendments that (according to their supporters) would have reduced or eliminated reliance on the property tax as a means of financing education. School finance reformers were perplexed by these defeats. This study sets out to explain the…

This report analyzes the impact of California's 1972 Senate Bill 90 and 1973 Assembly Bill 1267 as they have affected public school finance in California. The portions of SB 90 and AB 1267 that pertain to operating school districts contain general property tax rollback and revenue limit features, as well as mechanisms designed to lessen the…

This paper discusses the impact and implications of school finance equalization, focusing in particular on the Serrano case and its effect on school finance in California. The paper is organized in three main parts. Section 1 is an introductory section that discusses the major legal and practical implications of several court cases involving…

The five States represented include Florida, Michigan, Wisconsin, Kansas, and California. For each State the data are presented in terms of the changes occurring in State aid/pupil, the changes in local revenues/pupil, and the changes in local school property tax rates. A final column lists the change in total taxable property for schools, 1972-73…

Explores two alternatives to the local school property tax: a power equalizing property tax and a statewide tax. Compares effects on tax burdens and service levels for 13 cities in San Diego County. Available from American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 50 East 69th Street, New York, NY 10021; sc $3.00. (Author/JM)

The authors contend that a solution to the problems raised by the "Serrano" decision is impossible without an understanding of the basic facts of public education in California. Size, cost, discrepancies, and ranking in relationship to other states and the nation are advanced to place California's public school system in clearer focus.…

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…

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…