This report summarizes the fiscal effects of education choice programs across the United States from an analysis of 48 private education choice programs in 25 states plus D.C. The programs in the analysis include five education savings account programs, 22 school voucher programs, and 21 tax credit scholarship programs. This study estimates the…

Governments and development partners encourage public school authorities to mobilize private funds from diverse non-state stakeholders as a means to expand funding sources to provide quality education for all. While financing public schools with private funds is expected to promote the efficient use of resources due to increased accountability, it…

What would it take to truly close the vast opportunity gaps in pre-K-12 public education in the United States--far beyond the weak standard in common use of "adequacy" based on test scores? This report presents findings from the North Carolina part of a national costing-out study called the "Price of Opportunity," which seeks…

Do education choice programs take money from public school districts, leaving fewer resources for students who remain? The issue at the heart of this question is one of the most powerful arguments offered by skeptics and opponents of such programs. A district's total budget might expand or contract as its student population expands or contracts.…

Opponents of public charter schools frequently contend that they drain resources from traditional public schools--a potentially serious charge. But of course, it makes sense that traditional school districts get less money when they enroll fewer students. So from a policymaking perspective, the real question is whether districts' financial…

Property taxes are the most common mechanism to generate local revenue for public school systems but are also a long-standing source of inequity. Policymakers and advocates should be aware of the challenges created by local funding mechanisms in their states and consider potential policy solutions to produce more equitable education funding. This…

On April 2, the Milwaukee Public Schools will ask Milwaukee voters to allow the district to exceed state revenue limits by up to $252 million over four years to support its schools and programs. Here, we give our impartial take on the referendum, based on more than a decade of annual reviews of MPS' budget and finances. Our intent is to frame for…

This brief presents the results of a fiscal analysis of the New Hampshire Education Freedom Account Program. The Education Freedom Account Program enables students from low- and middle-income households to access education savings accounts (ESAs) designated for various educational purposes such as private school tuition, tutoring, textbooks,…

During the Great Recession and in the years that immediately followed, previous research has well-documented that U.S. public school districts receiving larger shares of their funding from state governments experienced larger declines in expenditures per student, as the GR impacted state tax bases more than it impacted local tax bases. Using…

The purpose of this was to examine the relationship between Mississippi public school district per pupil funding disaggregated by funding source (total, federal, state, and local) and student academic achievement gaps within districts based on poverty and race. Pearson's correlational coefficient was used to assess the relationship across 139…

In many parts of the country, enrollment in traditional public schools has fallen to its lowest point in decades. However, states, cities, and school districts have been slow to respond to the reality of empty desks. This report examines trends in school enrollment, focusing on several of America's most populous cities, as well as the budgetary…

The data presented in this report provide facts about the extent to which local, state, and national governments commit resources to public education. The level of commitment to education varies on a state-by-state basis. National Education Association (NEA) Research offers this report to its state and local affiliates as well as to researchers,…

Charter schools are public schools that operate free from some government regulations in return for a commitment to achieve a set of student outcomes specified in their charter. Nearly 8,000 public charter schools enrolled 3.7 million students in the U.S. in 2020-21. In major cities, charter schools receive less funding per pupil compared to…

At their best, K-12 public school systems can be engines of social and economic mobility. Unfortunately, schools in lower-income districts -- whose students have the greatest academic needs -- often receive less funding than their counterparts in more affluent districts. Discussions about closing these funding gaps usually zoom all the way out to…

District expenditures and efficiency can be influenced by the entry of charter schools. Loss of economies due to reduced enrollments and a rising share of high-cost students are some of the key mechanisms that could potentially increase the costs of providing education in district schools. The competitive pressure from charter schools could also…