Describes a lawsuit filed in January 1982 by New Hampshire students, parents, and school districts charging that the state's elementary and secondary education system's heavy reliance on local property taxes violates the state constitution by creating substantial inequities in the funds available per pupil in each district. (Author/RW)

In "Edgewood Independent School District v. Kirby," the Texas Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the state's school financial system violated the "efficiency" provision of the Texas Constitution. The court gave the legislature until May 1, 1990, to come forward with a constitutional school finance plan. (MLF)

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.…

The major issues surrounding the financing of schools cluster in three areas: the use of public money in private and parochial schools, the sources and allocation of public school funds, and the ability to raise school taxes. Although the number of cases dealing with religion declined, there were cases concerning the use of public money to provide…

This seventh chapter of "The Yearbook of School Law, 1986" summarizes and analyzes state and federal court decisions handed down in 1985 related to the financing of elementary and secondary education. The major topics examined are the use of public funds for private schools, the sources and allocation of public school funds, and school tax issues.…

This special bulletin examines the Texas Supreme Court's January 1995 final opinion in the Edgewood vs. Meno case, the latest in a series of rulings on the constitutionality of the Texas public school funding system. The first article summarizes the majority opinion, discusses the implications of the court's 5-4 ruling, and suggests that further…

Examines present lack of judicial restraint by analyzing "Missouri v. Jenkins," a case upholding a court-ordered tax increase to fund school desegregation. Maintains that elected representatives placate interest groups and abdicate power in favor of the courts when political decisions are unpopular. Questions the implications for future…

This review of the history of school finance litigation highlights various rulings of the courts and the ways that legal strategies have changed over time. Originally the school finance cases were based on the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the argument being that differences in per pupil spending had…

Decisions made by federal and state courts during 1983 concerning school finance are reported in this chapter. Among the decisions discussed are United States Supreme Court findings in cases involving tuition tax credits, reimbursement of misapplied Title I funds by states, and tuition requirements for nonresident students. Cases concerning the…