Although the Illinois Farmland Assessment Act is not an educational finance reform but is designed to ease the increasing tax burden on the state's farmland and provide a uniform, state-wide method of farmland tax valuation, it has a significant impact on K-12 public school financing because of the relationship between property and public school…

The role of the state in funding California's community colleges may change in the wake of Proposition 13 cutbacks. Any system of statewide support must be developed around several assumptions: (1) state support will increase; (2) the college mission will remain unchanged; (3) educational demand will continue to play a substantial role in how the…

In response to advocates of an expanded mission for community colleges, this three-part monograph examines the conflict between aspirations for continuing mission development and financial constraints. Part I reviews the development of six aspects of the current community college mission: transfer, vocational, developmental, continuing education,…

This report combines a theoretical study of state school aid programs with an empirical study of school districts' responses to such programs. The author's theoretical investigation of existing systems of general state aid to school districts suggests two propositions: school districts do not maximize an ordinary utility function in the light of…

This handbook on school finance is prepared to give the taxpayers of the state of Washington an overview of the financing and organization of the public schools, grades K-12. An attempt has been made to show in general terms where the revenues to support this segment of public education come from, how they are distributed to individual school…

The present public library financing system is described and assessed, and the key issues for consideration in either reaffirming its continued use or in the development of new approaches are delineated. Special emphasis is given to illuminating those issues and factors affecting metropolitan areas--both core city and suburban fringes. The…

This study evaluates the tax burden changes that occur as two local service functions, welfare and education, are shifted to State government financing. An analysis of alternative methods of such financing is undertaken, and the effects of these methods on the residents of the two central cities of Kansas City standard metropolitan statistical…

The task force was charged with the responsibility of reexamining the whole base for financing public elementary and secondary education in Wisconsin, making recommendations for shifting the base of elementary and secondary school funding from the local property tax to other means of public support to eliminate the disparity of educational…

This booklet is divided into five sections. The first discusses the differences between education costs and education expenditures and the alternative ways that education costs can be measured. The second section shows how economic analysis can be used to isolate and measure the factors that cause differences in education costs. Section three…

Explains variations in per pupil expenditures among school boards in Ontario, Canada, using the "median voter model," which compares consumer behavior with government funding actions. With an inequitable tax price an important policy variable, the school grant program needs redesigning to achieve equity without sacrificing efficiency.…

An assessment was conducted to determine accurately the true cost of education at different types of institutions and to identify the degree of government support. The article discusses procedures for updating the data, cost components, data sources, indirect tax expenditures for postsecondary education, and how to obtain additional information.…

With reference to the case of Ohio, this paper considers whether various types of state grants affect school districts by increasing total spending or by providing tax relief. Regression equations are used to estimate the effects of categorical and general purpose assistance on local tax revenue and on outlays for teacher salaries. (MJL)

Alaska's public schools cost $1.2 billion in the 1992-93 school year. That included both operating and capital spending and amounted to about $10,000 for each of the state's 119,000 elementary and secondary students. Roughly one-quarter of the state government's general fund budget went to the schools, covering 64 percent of costs. About 30…

The system of school finance equity in Texas is described as it existed before the court case Edgewood Independent School District (ISD) v. Kirby, and the overhaul mandated by legal rulings in the evolving Edgewood case is reviewed. In Texas, as elsewhere, the system of school finance has historically been based on the local property taxes…

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…