ERIC Number: ED626080
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2022-Dec
Pages: 22
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Balancing Act: How States Can Address Local Wealth Inequity in Education Finance
Dammu, Indira; O'Keefe, Bonnie; Schiess, Jennifer O'Neal
Bellwether
The vast majority of funds for pre-K through grade 12 public schools in the United States -- nearly $800 billion or over 90% -- come from state and local funding sources. States, not school districts, are obligated to ensure that all students have access to the resources they need to succeed. States can take steps to reduce disparities between districts based on their property wealth. This brief outlines three broad ways that states can allocate state and local revenue more equitably, as well as examples from states that have enacted these policies. The three policy approaches are as follows: (1) Accurately calculating and incorporating measures of local wealth into funding formulas; (2) Allocating additional funding to less wealthy districts; and (3) Exerting state control over property tax policy.
Descriptors: Educational Finance, Educational Equity (Finance), State Aid, Public Schools, Elementary Secondary Education, Resource Allocation, State Policy, Funding Formulas, School Districts, Taxes
Bellwether. 650 Massachusetts Avenue, NW Suite 600, Washington, D.C. 20001. Tel: 877-636-0909; Web site: https://bellwether.org/
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Authoring Institution: Bellwether
Identifiers - Location: Virginia; Georgia; Texas; Vermont; Kansas; Michigan
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A