Examines trends in state financial school support in terms of increasing costs, state courts' attitudes, complications in school finance systems, national attention on local policies, and the need for policymakers to broaden their concerns. (KS)

Over the past five years, many states have modified their systems for providing aid to local school districts for current operating expenses, but few changes have taken place in states' support of local districts' capital outlay expenditures. However, the issues surrounding capital expenditures are somewhat different from those involved in current…

Since publication of "A Nation at Risk" in 1983, state and local expenditures for education have increased significantly, from $108.4 billion a decade ago to $210.4 billion by 1991-92. On average, per-pupil spending for 1991-92 was more than $1,250, or 30 percent, above the level required to keep pace with inflation during the 1980s. State…

Achieving a state education finance program that is fair to students, taxpayers, teachers, and school districts is complicated by varying student needs and different property tax rates and school expenses among districts. Attempts at equitable allocation of state aid funds and other educational resources should be guided by the principles of…

Drawing from the literature on the financing of community colleges, this paper discusses problems associated with state community college funding and examines the relationships that arise between the state, local community college districts, and students when each is an important source of revenue to the community college. In the first section,…

Part I of a two-part series examines various approaches currently used by states to provide aid to local school districts, including flat grants, foundation grants, matching systems, the multitier approach, categorical aid, transportation aid, and capital outlay/debt service support systems. Related issues and special features are then discussed.…

Problems associated with state support for community colleges are discussed with particular emphasis on situations where local college districts are responsible for providing a portion of total institutional revenue. Three of these problems, relating to the equity and efficiency of how state aid is distributed, are: (1) the integration of direct…