The State Higher Education Finance (SHEF) report is produced annually by the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) to broaden understanding of the context and consequences of multiple public policy decisions in each state. These decisions contribute to public higher education funding levels and funding distributions across states and nationally. Although the cost of college has been rising for students and families, so has the potential economic benefit of earning a postsecondary credential or degree. Greater attention to both the costs and benefits of higher education influences the environment in which political leaders, policymakers, and educators make decisions. No single report can provide definitive answers to the broad and fundamental questions of state higher education finance policy, but the SHEF report supplies important context and trend analysis to help inform policy decisions. SHEF provides the earliest possible review of state and local support, tuition revenue, and enrollment trends for the most recently completed fiscal year. The report includes: (1) An explanation of the measures and methods used in the SHEF metrics for analysis; (2) A description of the revenue sources and uses for higher education; (3) An analysis of national trends in enrollment and revenue; (4) Comparisons of the SHEF metrics across states and over time; (5) Indicators of state wealth, tax effort, and relative allocations for higher education; and (6) A series of case studies that add important context and understanding to the data presented in the report. This year, the report highlights case studies on our ongoing data improvement project as well as outcomes-based funding and the importance of evaluating state wealth when considering state support for higher education. [For "State Higher Education Finance FY 2016," see ED593738.]