After summarizing the philosophy behind the financing of public schools, this document reviews the division of legal responsibility for education between the state and federal governments; outlines the state's responsibility for providing an equal educational opportunity for its residents; and summarizes the use of federal revenues, state…

Reporting on school financing in Alberta, the 1982 Task Force presents its conclusions and recommendations. These are based on the evaluation of finance plans in terms of the following stated principles: educational equality and financial equity, educational program and school finance, leadership, diversity of revenue sources, and local control.…

Five interpretations of equity are examined as they relate to the distribution of public goods and services. The first principle, utilitarianism, maintains that individuals are free to pursue their own interests and are rewarded according to contributions. The second principle, needs, is the basis of communist societies in which each gives…

This paper traces the evaluation of state-local public education finance systems to present; examines the prevalent foundation system of finance; discusses the "Serrano" decision and its implications for foundation systems; and, after an examination of three possible new approaches, recommends an education finance system. The first of the new…

This preliminary report summarizes much of the work and findings of the research staff of the Committee on Equal Educational Opportunity of the Oregon Legislature. The research staff's task was to analyze Oregon's current school finance system and its various alternatives and to develop a computer simulation for predicting the impact of…

The financial plan presented in this paper removes some of the current inequities of the property tax through the following basic features: a per pupil expenditure lid up to which the State provides aid; an equalized assessment rate which is enforced; State aid distributed on the basis of the wealth of the district in comparison to the wealth of…

This document consists of a series of papers by different authors on the subject of school finance and equal educational opportunity. One group of papers studies the effect of State aid on the scope of the educational program, reports on the status of capital assistance financing for the Illinois Public Schools, and illustrates the method of…

Intended for both researchers and practitioners, this analysis and bibliography cites approximately 100 publications on educational taxation, including general texts and reports, statistical reports, taxation guidelines, and alternative proposals for taxation. Topics covered in the analysis section include State and Federal aid, urban and suburban…

This document contains statements by educators, religious groups, government officials, constitutional experts, and concerned citizens and groups on various legislative proposals to provide aid to elementary and secondary education. The proposals would (1) provide payments to the States for elementary and secondary education, (2) redress…

In 1969, the governor made a series of recommendations to the Legislature and to the people of Michigan regarding changes in the method of funding elementary and secondary schools. The current system, which relies heavily on the local property tax, has produced sizable inequities of educational opportunity among the children of the State. Since…

After decades of media attention, study, and lawsuits, the solution to inequities in school funding remains elusive. This paper examines several strategies that states have used to try to close the funding disparities in per-pupil spending. It explains the two definitions of equity in the school-finance arena and identifies some important trends…

An overview is provided of the fiscal development of the Illinois public community college system. Introductory sections consider the history and administrative structure of the system, and explain special funding provisions of the Public Junior College Act of 1965. The next section provides a profile of past state appropriations, focusing on…

An analysis by the Commission on Financial Postsecondary Education of the system by which New Jersey supports county colleges revealed disparities and inequities among the New Jersey counties in wealth and effort per full-time equivalent student, and current state financing practices that aggravate this problem. In response, alternative state…

This report examines various school finance issues raised by the California case of Serrano v. Priest. Chapter 1 focuses on the issue of local control; it discusses four methods of providing state aid to education in terms of how they affect local control of schools. Chapter 2 analyzes different remedies for inequitable distribution of funds and…

Vermont's Act 60 received national attention not only because of the controversy surrounding the sharing pool (or recapture provision) but also because of its "potential for being the most equitable system in the country." For fiscal years 1998 to 2001, tax rates have become more equitable, and a direct relationship has appeared between…