A major feature of the school finance landscape over the last two decades has been the reform of state school finance systems. Using the case of Maryland's Bridge to Excellence in Public Schools Act, this paper extends the current literature by developing a conceptual framework for residential bidding and sorting and using it to estimate housing…

This issue memorandum describes Constitutional Amendment A, an initiative in South Dakota that, if approved, would prohibit taxation of real property for school purposes. The report provides background information on Constitutional Amendment A, which reads as follows: "The legislature shall make such provision by general taxation as with the…

Examines Georgia's use of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax for Education (ESPLOST). Finds that ESPLOST increases revenue disparities among districts. Discusses policy implications. (Contains 36 references.) (PKP)

Stimulating economic activity by offering tax abatements can deprive schools of tax revenues for years while enrollment is increasing. Taking action forestalled a substantial loss of revenue for the Twinsburg City Schools in Ohio. Offers advice to boards facing a similar circumstance and suggests ways school boards can be involved in enterprise…

Describes the development of Proposition One, which threatened to drastically cut education and social services in Florida by reducing the State and local governments' purchasing power to below 1980 levels. Assesses the potential for resurgence of the legislation, following its removal from the ballot by the State Supreme Court. (GC)

Summarizes alternative tax systems available to school districts in Ohio and reviews their development. Presents socioeconomic information about the populations of two Ohio towns, summarizes limitations of the property tax as the primary source of local school funds, and discusses implications of passing a city-district income tax in Euclid, Ohio.…

This report summarizes the status of states' budgets at the end of fiscal year 1997. The year's strong national economy boosted tax revenues and helped to decrease welfare rolls. Unemployment at the end of 1997 was below 5 percent nationally and real GDP growth was 3.5 percent for the first 3 quarters of the year. These indicators translate into…

This document provides background information on educational finance in North Dakota. It examines the use of nonproperty factors in financing education, the quality of education, legal action in the state regarding education finance issues, and the effects of any 1993 North Dakota legislation on education finance. The paper first describes changes…

1976 saw a number of major fiscal changes occurring in New Jersey, all of which had an impact on educational funding. These include the imposition of a state income tax, a property tax rebate program, and a new system of funding public education that significantly increases the state's share of total education support. Based on a measure of the…

School finance reform, in the opinion of many of those concerned, implies a shift away from the local property tax as the main source of revenue for the public schools. The inequities associated with property tax administration and the uneven distribution of property tax wealth within any given state have led to increasing concern about the wisdom…

This report updates developments relating to public school finance legislation in Texas during a special summer legislative session in 1984. Discussion focuses on House Bill 72, which increased teachers salaries, distributed state aid more equitably, increased equalization aid, mandated new programs, and increased state taxes. (TE)

This paper traces the historical development of New York State Small City School District (SCSD) school budget voting policy. State policymakers are currently debating whether to change from representative to referendum school budget voting in SCSDs. Following a historical analysis of the current debate, the argument is made that there no longer…

Reviews a Minnesota study of tax concessions to private school parents and provides an analysis of the strategy of constituency mobilization. The Minnesota experience shows that a mobilized, powerful issue constituency can enforce political accountability on the bargaining process and influence educational policy. Such single issue linkages…

In light of the passage of Proposition 13 in California, which requires rethinking of the state's school financing structure, the author assesses the advantages and disadvantages of complete state financing v retaining some proportion of the revenue function at the local level. (Author/SJL)

The history of and issues involved in the implementation of a tax appraisal program in West Virginia are highlighted in this paper, with a focus on taxation litigation since 1975. Efforts of the state legislature to implement a uniform tax system since the 1982 "Recht Decision," which found the state school funding system to be…