This case, inspired by a real school district scenario, was developed for use in a graduate-level course in school finance. James Spencer had just been selected as the new superintendent of a low-income, 400-student, rural school district in need of many capital improvements. The previous superintendent had refused to hold a bond election because…

Traces the presence of tax burden equity and educational funding equity interests in recent court rulings in order to place Connecticut's Horton vs Meskill in context. Also describes the California and New Jersey state legislatures' responses to similar state Supreme Court rulings on school finance. (Author/IRT)

Discusses the Texas Supreme Court's upholding of a 1987 trial court decision that declared the Texas public school finance system unconstitutional. Summarizes remedies and requirements for equalizing resources, providing adequate resources to spur productivity, and structuring the system to conserve the considerable dollars required for equity and…

Discusses the Texas Supreme Court's upholding of a 1987 trial court decision that declared the Texas public school finance system unconstitutional. Summarizes remedies and requirements for equalizing resources, providing adequate resources to spur productivity, and structuring the system to conserve the considerable dollars required for equity and…

The court's finding invalidates New York State's system of financing schools because of problems including municipal overburden. (Author/IRT)

Discusses the educational finance problems facing West Virginia since Judge Arthur Recht ruled the state's school funding system unconstitutional because it created disparities and inequities. Unfortunately, Judge Jerry Cook's 1987 funding plan was overturned in November 1988, and the state legislature has failed to address property reappraisal…

In November 1990, a group of 47 school districts filed suit against the state of Illinois, charging that inequity in school financing violates the right to equal protection under the state constitution. This report, prepared by a coalition of 17 Chicago-based nonprofit organizations, provides Illinois citizens with an analysis of current school…

Arguments for and against extension of Section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code, which permits tax deductions for money or property gifts to nonprofit organizations, are presented, considering both theoretical and practical issues. (AVAIL: Dennis & Co., 251 Main St., Buffalo, NY 14203) (MSE)

Presents criteria that have been clarified by recent court decisions in school finance cases and reform guidelines that have emerged from State action. (Author)

Funding education with property taxes has always been controversial. This paper examines taxation and the sources of revenue for education. The historical context in which tax and revenue sources have supported education in the United States is described. Also discussed are state tax-policy goals and education funding, and the embattled role of…

Examines the conditions that are forcing the Federal Government to take the first serious steps toward an overhaul of educational finances. Predicts that the local property tax will soon be supplemented by substantial State and federal support. Describes potential revisions in the tax structure that would call for equal sharing of the education…

This article describes the past 25 years of school finance policy reforms, illustrates tensions among various value proponents, and distills commonalities of reform efforts and their effects. Speculations on the probable points of conflict for the 1980s are provided. (Author/LC)

Summarizes and critiques West Virginia educational reforms during the past decade, highlighting the state's rural character, a brief history of the reform catalyst (Pauley v. Bailey), recent reform activity, and some cautiously optimistic predictions. The state's 1982 Master Plan for education has been replaced by Policy 2000, whose six goals…

Examines distributional implications of a recent Supreme Court of Texas decision mandating a fiscally neutral school finance system. Comparing 1988-89 system's distribution with that of two forms of district power equalization, this article finds that the new alternatives would generate a more equal distribution of expenditures per unit of tax…

In October 1988, 48 suburban and greater Minnesota school districts, representing approximately 20 percent of the state's public elementary and secondary school students, filed a lawsuit claiming that Minnesota's school financing system violates the state's constitutional mandate for equality of educational opportunity. (A ruling in the case is…