Revenues and expenditures by public school districts: school year 2001-02.

Johnson, Frank

This report presents findings from the Common Core of Data (CCD) "School District Finance Survey." These data are collected annually from state education agencies through the U.S. Census Bureau's "Survey of Local Government Finances: School Systems." Data in the "School District Finance Survey" include revenues by source, expenditures by function and object, long-term and short-term debt, and student membership for each school district in the United States.

This short report on school district revenues and expenditures is a companion to the state-level E.D. TAB, Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education: School Year 2001-02 (Cohen and Johnson 2004), which presents total state and national spending on public elementary and secondary education. These data were collected and edited between March 2003 and March 2004. These data are final.

Only regular school districts with student counts greater than 0, current expenditures per student between $2,500 and $35,000, and that are on the CCD "Local Education Agency Universe Survey" file were included in this analysis. There were 14,002 such districts in school year 2001-02.

Data on the number of students and districts within each state also show the variation in the organization of education across the country. For example, Florida, with over 2 million students, has 67 school districts, whereas Nebraska, with fewer than 300,000 students, has 524 school districts. The number and size of school districts may affect administrative and other overhead costs.

The District of Columbia is a single urban school district. It is treated separately from the states in the analysis below, because it is often an outlier with larger revenues and expenditures per student than 95 percent of the districts in most states. The District of Columbia did not report any finance data for its charter schools.

The federal range ratio is used in this report as an indicator of the difference between districts with relatively high revenues (or expenditures) per student and districts with relatively low revenues (or expenditures) per student, within the state and the nation. It is the difference between the amount per student of the district at the 95th percentile and the district at the 5th percentile, divided by the amount for the district at the 5th percentile. (1)

Highlights

Revenues per student received by school districts

* In the 2001-02 school year, the median school district received $8,572 per student in revenues from state, local, and federal sources (table 1). The median revenue per student indicates that half of the districts received less than $8,572 per student and half of the districts received more than $8,572 per student.

* Median school district revenues per student among the states ranged from $6,039 in Tennessee to $16,342 in Alaska. Revenues in the District of Columbia were $16,627.

* Ninety percent of the school districts in the country received between $6,208 and $16,286 per student. When school district revenues per student are ranked from highest to lowest, the value for the district at the 5th percentile was $6,208, and the value for the district at the 95th percentile was $16,286. The federal range ratio indicates the difference, or "disparity," between the 5th and 95th percentile. The federal range ratio for total revenues per student was 1.62, indicating that the district at the 95th percentile received 162 percent more revenue per student as the district at the 5th percentile.

* The federal range ratio varied from 0.3 in Kentucky, Maryland, and West Virginia to 2.7 in Montana. In 25 states the revenues per student were relatively homogeneous, with districts at the 95th percentile reporting less than twice the amount of revenue per student as the district at the 5th percentile; that is, their federal range ratios were under 1.0. On the other hand, the top 5 percent of the districts in four states received revenues per student of more than three times the revenue per student of the districts at the bottom 5 percent; that is, their federal range ratios were greater than 2.0.

Total expenditures per student by school districts

* In 2001-02, the median total expenditure by school districts in the nation was $8,424 per student (table 2). This included current operating expenditures, capital outlays (for school construction and equipment), expenditures for programs other than elementary/secondary education (such as adult education and community service programs), interest payments on long-term debt, and payments to state and local governments. Total expenditures do not include payments to other school districts. (Revenues received from other school districts are included in total revenues.)

* Tables 2 and 3 include median expenditures across districts in all states for specific types of expenditures and for the total of these expenditures. The median district in total expenditures is unlikely to be the median district in current expenditures or other types of expenditures. Therefore, the median expenditures for the components (e.g., current, instruction, support services, etc.) do not sum to the median for total expenditures.

* Total expenditures per student ranged between $6,001 and $16,184 for 90 percent of the school districts in the country (i.e., those districts between the 5th and 95th percentiles; table 2). The federal range ratio for total expenditures per student was 1.70, indicating that the district at the 95th percentile spent 170 percent more per student as the district at the 5th percentile. The federal range ratio was slightly less for current expenditures (1.38) and instruction (1.44) and slightly more for support services (1.90).

* Per student spending on capital outlay (for school construction and equipment) in districts with per student expenditures at the 95th percentile was 8,417 percent more than that of districts at the 5th percentile (table 2). Most of the expenditures reported for capital outlay are for school construction. School districts with stable student populations may not need to make large expenditures for school construction, whereas districts experiencing a growing population of children tend to spend more money on school construction. In addition, expenditures for construction do not appear regularly from one year to the next. Districts may build several schools at the same time. This results in a large expenditure for capital outlays one year and small expenditures in subsequent years.

* Per student spending for programs other than elementary/secondary education was approximately 29 times greater in high-spending districts than the national median ($263 vs. $9; table 2). The adult education and community service programs that make up most of the other program spending do not exist in many school districts. At least 5 percent of all school districts do not have programs other than elementary/secondary education, nor do they have interest payments or payments to other government agencies.

* Median total expenditures per student ranged from $5,954 in Mississippi to $16,456 in Alaska (table 3). Total expenditures in the District of Columbia were $16,738. The median total expenditure per student was over $10,000 in Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, and Wyoming.

* Median per student expenditures for instruction (teacher salaries, classroom supplies, etc.) ranged from $3,254 in Mississippi to $8,931 in Alaska (table 3). Among the 10 states with the highest median expenditures per student for instruction, 8 were in the Northeast. (2)

* Median per student expenditures for capital projects (primarily school construction) ranged from $145 in Vermont to $1,597 in Delaware (table 3) among the 50 states. Capital expenditures per student were $3,198 in the District of Columbia.

Current expenditures per student

Because of the variation in the kinds of programs run by school districts and the large swings in school construction expenditures, researchers often use current rather than total expenditures when reporting and comparing school district expenditures. Current expenditures are expenditures for the day-to-day operations of schools and school districts. They do not include expenditures for construction, equipment, debt financing, and programs outside of public elementary/secondary education.

* The median current expenditure per student for the nation was $7,294 (table 4).

* Per student spending in districts at the 95th percentile was more than 138 percent more than per student spending in districts at the 5th percentile (i.e., the federal range ratio was 1.38). Spending in districts at the 95th percentile was less than 50 percent higher than spending in districts at the 5th percentile in 13 states (i.e., the federal range ratio was less than 0.50).

* The median current expenditure per student in Alaska ($14,549) and the District of Columbia ($13,330) was larger than the current expenditure per student in 95 percent of all districts in the nation (in other words, greater than $13,026).

* The three states with the highest federal range ratio in current expenditures per student were Alaska, Montana, and Nevada. Expenditures per student were more than three times greater in the district at the 95th percentile than the district at the 5th percentile in these states (i.e., their federal range ratio was greater than 2.0). The ratio was lowest in Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, and West Virginia. In the five lowest states, current expenditures per student at the 95th percentile were less than 35 percent greater than spending at the 5th percentile.

Current expenditures for charter schools

Independent charter schools are public schools that are exempted from significant state or local rules that normally govern the operation and management of public schools. A charter school may be affiliated with a regular school district, a university, or a private organization. In order to include all charter schools in its files, NCES created a separate school district record for each charter school (or charter school organization) that is not affiliated with a school district. In this report, data for charter schools that are associated with regular school districts are included with the data reported for the entire school district, and the data for those schools and the affiliated districts are indistinguishable from districts that do not have charter schools.

Data for independent charter schools that are not affiliated with a regular school district were included in this report if they could be matched to the CCD "Local Education Agency Universe Survey," if they had a student membership count greater than 0, and if they had both total revenues and total expenditures greater than 0. Data for independent charter school districts are reported at the bottom of each table in this report and are not included in the national totals or averages. Certain charter school districts in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas fell into this category. These data are kept separate because in many cases the data are not complete or fail to meet NCES editing standards. This is to be expected if the districts are not required to report finance data to a district or other local government agency. In some cases a charter school district may operate more than one charter school.

* The median revenue per student for independent charter schools (not affiliated with a public school district) was $7,283 (table 1). The median revenue for 90 percent of these districts ranged from $3,876 to $13,894.

* The median total expenditure per student for independent charter schools was $7,066 (table 2).

* Current expenditures per student in charter schools ranged from $3,952 to $12,133 for 90 percent of the charter school districts.

Current expenditures for unified districts

District-level analyses and comparisons can be complicated by the variety of administrative structures that exist across the nation in regular school districts. States such as Florida, Maryland, Nevada, and West Virginia have large districts that are coterminous with counties and encompass all levels and types of public schools. School districts in other states may exist in small communities with only one school, or in larger communities where all elementary schools are in one school district and all secondary schools are in another. In some states, all special education schools are administered by a few specific districts; in other states, each district may have all kinds of different schools and programs. (3) This variety in the types of school districts makes comparison of expenditures among school districts difficult.

The information presented in tables 1 through 4 is based on all regular education school districts reporting student counts that are reported on the CCD "Local Education Agency Universe Survey," regardless of grades served. table 5 presents current expenditures per student in regular unified districts only. Unified districts are school districts with both elementary and secondary education programs.

In nine states, fewer than half of the school districts were unified (Arizona, California, Illinois, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Vermont). In two states, Montana and Vermont, fewer than half of the students attended schools in unified districts. The federal range ratio was reduced from 1.38 to 1.17 when only unified school districts were analyzed.

* Unified school districts serve students in all grades. The median current expenditure for unified school districts in the nation was $7,157 per student, with 90 percent of all districts ranging between $5,505 and $11,931 (table 5). The federal range ratio was 1.17, indicating a slight reduction in variation of per student spending compared with all regular school districts (1.38) reported in table 4.

References

Berne, R., and Stiefel, L. (1984). The Measurement of Equity in School Finance. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Cohen, C., and Johnson, F. (2004). Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education School Year 2001-02 (NCES 2004-341). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Available: http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2004/2004341.pdf.

Hussar, W., and Sonnenberg, W. (2000). Trends in Disparities in School District Level Expenditures per Pupil (NCES 2000-020). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Parrish, T.B., Matsumoto, C.S., and Fowler, W.J., Jr. (1995). Disparities in Public School District Spending 1989-90 (NCES 95-300). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics.

Footnotes

(1) Comparisons using the federal range ratio exclude the top and bottom 5 percent of districts, and reduce the influence of extreme cases. The federal range ratio conveys an idea of the magnitude of differences between districts with relatively high revenues or expenditures per student and districts with relatively low revenues or expenditures per student, after excluding extremes. The federal range ratio has been used by Berne and Stiefel (1984); Parrish, Matsumoto, and Fowler (1995); and Hussar and Sonnenberg (2000).

(2) These states are New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, and Delaware. Instruction expenditures per student in the District of Columbia were higher than any state's median per student instruction expenditures, except in Alaska and New York.

(3) Special education districts were not included in regular districts.

Data source: The NCES Common Core of Data (CCD), "School District Finance Survey (F-33)," FY 2002.

For technical information, see the complete report: Johnson, F. (2005). Revenues and Expenditures by Public School Districts: School Year 2001-02 (NCES 2005-342).

Author affiliation: F. Johnson, NCES.

For questions about content, contact Frank Johnson (frank.johnson@ed.gov).

To obtain the complete report (NCES 2005-342), visit the NCES Electronic Catalog (http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch).

Table 1. Revenues per student for public elementary and secondary
school districts, by state: School year 2001-02

 Revenues per student

 5th 95th
State percentile Median percentile

United States $6,208 $8,572 $16,286

Alabama 6,149 6,768 8,492
Alaska 7,930 16,342 28,555
Arizona 5,659 8,173 18,035
Arkansas 5,956 6,611 8,974
California 6,710 7,979 14,628
Colorado 6,607 8,272 14,653
Connecticut 9,357 11,300 16,820
Delaware 9,102 10,239 12,295
District of Columbia ([dagger]) (2) 16,627 ([dagger]) (2)
Florida 6,512 7,207 9,435
Georgia 6,973 8,119 10,632
Hawaii ([dagger]) (2) 10,239 ([dagger]) (2)
Idaho 5,730 7,510 13,691
Illinois 6,439 8,135 13,680
Indiana 7,360 8,474 11,144
Iowa 7,225 8,332 11,477
Kansas 6,858 8,392 11,460
Kentucky 6,167 6,837 8,021
Louisiana 6,126 7,220 9,367
Maine 8,158 10,620 20,750
Maryland 8,202 9,250 11,017
Massachusetts 8,164 10,623 19,685
Michigan 7,617 8,715 12,098
Minnesota 7,414 8,775 12,013
Mississippi 5,246 6,087 8,085
Missouri 6,201 7,513 11,321
Montana 5,278 8,148 19,325
Nebraska 5,125 8,551 16,750
Nevada 6,938 8,309 17,348
New Hampshire 7,309 10,618 21,521
New Jersey 9,775 12,458 19,636
New Mexico 6,792 10,404 18,727
New York 10,283 12,838 20,939
North Carolina 6,497 7,475 9,836
North Dakota 5,902 8,355 16,957
Ohio 6,848 8,045 14,991
Oklahoma 5,520 6,897 10,677
Oregon 7,107 8,322 19,671
Pennsylvania 7,819 9,167 12,296
Rhode Island 8,751 10,142 14,682
South Carolina 6,904 8,349 10,642
South Dakota 6,354 7,516 13,574
Tennessee 5,300 6,039 7,822
Texas 6,718 8,280 15,673
Utah 5,426 6,738 11,335
Vermont 8,661 14,376 24,525
Virginia 6,960 8,042 10,801
Washington 6,944 8,390 17,128
West Virginia 7,533 8,244 9,731
Wisconsin 8,386 9,757 12,009
Wyoming 8,658 12,063 22,898
Independent charter 3,876 7,283 13,894
 school districts

 Federal
 range Number of Number of
State ratio (1) districts students

United States 1.62 14,002 46,941,294

Alabama 0.38 128 726,367
Alaska 2.6 53 133,010
Arizona 2.19 230 864,264
Arkansas 0.51 310 449,161
California 1.18 971 6,066,162
Colorado 1.22 178 741,319
Connecticut 0.8 166 543,829
Delaware 0.35 16 105,752
District of Columbia ([dagger]) (2) 1 68,449
Florida 0.45 67 2,500,179
Georgia 0.52 179 1,466,836
Hawaii ([dagger]) (2) 1 184,546
Idaho 1.39 114 246,415
Illinois 1.12 891 2,047,836
Indiana 0.51 292 994,348
Iowa 0.59 371 485,932
Kansas 0.67 303 470,204
Kentucky 0.3 176 654,363
Louisiana 0.53 66 725,027
Maine 1.54 224 204,949
Maryland 0.34 24 860,640
Massachusetts 1.41 302 935,424
Michigan 0.59 553 1,661,301
Minnesota 0.62 342 832,369
Mississippi 0.54 152 492,198
Missouri 0.83 522 909,918
Montana 2.66 442 151,745
Nebraska 2.27 524 283,789
Nevada 1.5 17 356,814
New Hampshire 1.94 162 203,072
New Jersey 1.01 551 1,306,347
New Mexico 1.76 89 320,068
New York 1.04 687 2,846,644
North Carolina 0.51 117 1,296,156
North Dakota 1.87 218 105,936
Ohio 1.19 611 1,796,601
Oklahoma 0.93 542 621,573
Oregon 1.77 197 549,604
Pennsylvania 0.57 500 1,766,513
Rhode Island 0.68 36 156,624
South Carolina 0.54 85 674,347
South Dakota 1.14 173 127,129
Tennessee 0.48 137 897,695
Texas 1.33 1,045 4,115,727
Utah 1.09 40 481,182
Vermont 1.83 240 96,427
Virginia 0.55 132 1,162,045
Washington 1.47 296 1,009,200
West Virginia 0.29 55 282,145
Wisconsin 0.43 426 875,216
Wyoming 1.64 48 87,897
Independent charter 2.58 943 260,188
 school districts

([dagger]) Not applicable.

(1) The federal range ratio indicates the difference between the
district at the 5th percentile and the 95th percentile (when districts
are ranked by revenues per student within the state) as a ratio of the
value to revenues per student for the district at the 5th percentile.

(2) The District of Columbia and Hawaii consist of one school district
each.

NOTE: National figures do not include independent charter school
districts, i.e., those not affiliated with a non-charter school
district. Charter schools that are affiliated with regular school
districts are included in the national and state figures. Only regular
school districts matching the Common Core of Data (CCD) Agency Universe
and with student membership > 0 were used in creating the national and
state figures. Regular school districts with current expenditures per
student between $2,500 and $35,000 were included in the national and
state figures; 99.87 percent of the school districts met this
criterion. Charter school districts with revenues > 0 or expenditures
> 0 were included in the charter school analysis; 99.79 percent of
charter school districts met this criterion. It is assumed that some
charter school districts did not report all revenues.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education
Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), "School District Finance Survey
(F-33)," FY 2002, version 1a.

Table 2. Expenditures per student for elementary and secondary
education, by type of expenditure for regular districts and for
independent charter school districts: School year 2001-02

 Expenditures per student

 5th
Type of expenditure percentile Median

Regular districts
 Total $6,001 $8,424
Current 5,463 7,294
 Instruction 3,311 4,500
 Support services 1,641 2,481
 Non-instruction services 20 321
Capital outlay 50 443
Other programs 0 9
Payments to state and local governments 0 0
Interest on long-term debt 0 115
Payments to other school districts (2) 0 52
Independent charter school districts
 Total 4,000 7,066
Current 3,952 6,545
 Instruction 1,453 3,439
 Support services 1,354 2,861
 Non-instruction services 0 62
Capital outlay 0 0
Other programs 0 0
Payments to state and local governments 0 0
Interest on long-term debt 0 0
Payments to other school districts (2) 0 0

 Expenditures per student

 95th Federal range
Type of expenditure percentile ratio (1)

Regular districts
 Total $16,184 1.70
Current 13,026 1.38
 Instruction 8,087 1.44
 Support services 4,762 1.90
 Non-instruction services 635 30.44
Capital outlay 4,298 84.17
Other programs 263 ([dagger])
Payments to state and local governments 139 ([dagger])
Interest on long-term debt 662 ([dagger])
Payments to other school districts (2) 1,356 ([dagger])
Independent charter school districts
 Total 14,215 2.55
Current 12,133 2.07
 Instruction 6,667 3.59
 Support services 6,125 3.52
 Non-instruction services 582 ([dagger])
Capital outlay 2,266 ([dagger])
Other programs 282 ([dagger])
Payments to state and local governments 0 ([dagger])
Interest on long-term debt 184 ([dagger])
Payments to other school districts (2) 67 ([dagger])

([dagger]) Not applicable.

(1) The federal range ratio indicates the difference between the
district at the 5th percentile and the 95th percentile (when districts
are ranked by expenditures per student within the state) as a ratio of
the value to expenditures per student for the district at the 5th
percentile.

(2) Total expenditures do not include payments to other school
districts.

NOTE: National figures do not include independent charter school
districts, i.e., those not affiliated with a non-charter school
district. Charter schools that are affiliated with regular school
districts are included in the national and state figures. Only regular
school districts matching the Common Core of Data (CCD) Agency Universe
and with student membership > 0 were used in creating the national and
state figures. Regular school districts with current expenditures per
student between $2,500 and $35,000 were included in the national and
state figures; 99.87 percent of the school districts met this
criterion. Charter school districts with revenues > 0 or expenditures
> 0 were included in the charter school analysis; 99.79 percent of
charter school districts met this criterion. The District of Columbia
and Hawaii consist of one school district each. Other programs include
community services, adult education, and community colleges.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education
Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), "School District Finance Survey
(F-33)," FY 2002, version 1a.

Table 3. School district expenditures per student, by type of
expenditure and state: School year 2001-02

 Median per pupil expenditures

 Total Current
State expenditures (1) expenditures (2)

United States $8,424 $7,294
Alabama 6,755 6,042
Alaska 16,456 14,549
Arizona 7,585 6,197
Arkansas 6,438 5,813
California 8,109 7,003
Colorado 8,129 7,101
Connecticut 10,558 9,737
Delaware 10,726 8,742
District of Columbia (4) 16,738 13,330
Florida 7,262 6,015
Georgia 7,901 6,975
Hawaii (4) 7,785 7,306
Idaho 7,439 6,645
Illinois 8,157 7,043
Indiana 8,362 6,887
Iowa 7,551 6,796
Kansas 8,149 7,397
Kentucky 6,705 6,221
Louisiana 7,148 6,525
Maine 9,723 9,016
Maryland 9,272 8,077
Massachusetts 10,445 9,343
Michigan 8,467 7,268
Minnesota 8,478 7,014
Mississippi 5,954 5,420
Missouri 7,309 6,457
Montana 8,245 7,572
Nebraska 8,473 7,801
Nevada 8,530 7,807
New Hampshire 9,445 8,489
New Jersey 11,826 10,630
New Mexico 10,238 8,205
New York 13,629 11,219
North Carolina 7,425 6,633
North Dakota 7,859 7,303
Ohio 7,781 6,735
Oklahoma 6,897 6,601
Oregon 8,646 7,408
Pennsylvania 9,040 7,625
Rhode Island 9,845 9,530
South Carolina 8,478 6,936
South Dakota 7,865 6,772
Tennessee 6,378 5,523
Texas 8,417 7,066
Utah 6,727 5,656
Vermont 9,293 8,818
Virginia 7,797 6,989
Washington 8,156 7,049
West Virginia 8,361 7,671
Wisconsin 9,478 8,294
Wyoming 11,268 9,539
Independent charter 7,066 6,545
 school districts

 Median per pupil expenditures

 Other programs
 Capital and payments
 Instruction outlay to other govt.
State expenditures expenditures agencies (3)

United States $4,500 $443 $15
Alabama 3,725 380 132
Alaska 8,931 759 21
Arizona 3,287 679 0
Arkansas 3,671 283 0
California 4,448 617 20
Colorado 4,160 523 0
Connecticut 6,182 314 14
Delaware 5,489 1,597 17
District of Columbia (4) 6,617 3,198 210
Florida 3,437 907 107
Georgia 4,450 628 1
Hawaii (4) 4,417 228 250
Idaho 4,077 358 0
Illinois 4,257 585 1
Indiana 4,178 604 609
Iowa 4,173 434 0
Kansas 4,330 453 0
Kentucky 3,852 222 96
Louisiana 3,964 356 25
Maine 5,859 188 24
Maryland 4,853 793 25
Massachusetts 6,073 175 0
Michigan 4,532 450 76
Minnesota 4,502 581 291
Mississippi 3,254 282 4
Missouri 3,980 383 73
Montana 4,702 186 0
Nebraska 5,268 324 0
Nevada 4,623 496 40
New Hampshire 5,344 277 0
New Jersey 6,440 370 49
New Mexico 4,423 1,201 32
New York 7,449 995 51
North Carolina 4,131 380 28
North Dakota 4,225 391 0
Ohio 4,037 455 88
Oklahoma 3,780 200 4
Oregon 4,469 301 0
Pennsylvania 4,794 485 17
Rhode Island 6,209 150 54
South Carolina 4,144 832 80
South Dakota 4,007 640 0
Tennessee 3,611 369 67
Texas 4,372 531 5
Utah 3,492 722 151
Vermont 5,736 145 0
Virginia 4,325 449 13
Washington 4,279 415 1
West Virginia 4,695 496 52
Wisconsin 5,126 377 134
Wyoming 5,620 1,066 3
Independent charter 3,439 0 0
 school districts

 Median per pupil expenditures

 Interest Payments to
 expenditures on other
State long-term debt districts (1)

United States $115 $52
Alabama 72 1
Alaska 0 0
Arizona 12 0
Arkansas 118 0
California 29 32
Colorado 126 131
Connecticut 255 120
Delaware 81 300
District of Columbia (4) 0 0
Florida 91 0
Georgia 73 6
Hawaii (4) 0 0
Idaho 107 0
Illinois 117 286
Indiana 32 215
Iowa 83 694
Kansas 107 5
Kentucky 132 0
Louisiana 116 0
Maine 62 225
Maryland 87 89
Massachusetts 215 245
Michigan 346 10
Minnesota 299 264
Mississippi 112 0
Missouri 85 58
Montana 0 27
Nebraska 0 0
Nevada 242 1
New Hampshire 129 187
New Jersey 156 233
New Mexico 133 0
New York 318 29
North Carolina 107 0
North Dakota 0 403
Ohio 105 28
Oklahoma 15 0
Oregon 98 9
Pennsylvania 392 427
Rhode Island 153 210
South Carolina 178 12
South Dakota 43 39
Tennessee 146 0
Texas 168 40
Utah 171 0
Vermont 107 4,784
Virginia 104 60
Washington 182 12
West Virginia 0 8
Wisconsin 343 99
Wyoming 92 0
Independent charter 0 0
 school districts

(1) Total expenditures do not include payments to other school
districts.

(2) Current expenditures includes instruction, support services, and
non-instruction services.

(3) Other programs include community services, adult education, and
community colleges.

(4) The District of Columbia and Hawaii consist of only one school
district each.

NOTE: National figures do not include independent charter school
districts, i.e., those not affiliated with a non-charter school
district. Charter schools that are affiliated with regular school
districts are included in the national and state figures. Only school
districts matching the Common Core of Data (CCD) Agency Universe and
with student membership > 0 were used in creating this table. Districts
with current expenditures per student between $2,500 and $35,000 were
included in the national and state figures; 99.87 percent of the school
districts met this criterion. Charter schools with revenues > 0 and
expenditures > 0 were included in the charter school analysis; 99.79
percent of the charter school districts met this criterion. This table
reports the median school district expenditure for each category;
therefore, totals do not equal the sum of the detail.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education
Statistics, Common Core of Data (CCD), "School District Finance Survey
(F-33)," FY 2002, version 1a.

Table 4. Current expenditures per student for public elementary and
secondary school districts, by state: School year 2001-02

 Expenditures per student

 5th 95th
State percentile Median percentile

United States $5,463 $7,294 $13,026
Alabama 5,410 6,042 7,207
Alaska 7,740 14,549 24,377
Arizona 4,481 6,197 12,828
Arkansas 5,116 5,813 7,947
California 5,865 7,003 11,777
Colorado 5,568 7,101 13,175
Connecticut 8,424 9,737 12,869
Delaware 7,359 8,742 10,077
District of Columbia ([dagger]) (2) 13,330 ([dagger])
Florida 5,432 6,015 7,012
Georgia 6,114 6,975 8,942
Hawaii ([dagger]) (2) 7,306 ([dagger])
Idaho 5,087 6,645 11,326
Illinois 5,436 7,043 11,053
Indiana 6,057 6,887 9,027
Iowa 5,915 6,796 8,593
Kansas 5,903 7,397 9,932
Kentucky 5,554 6,221 7,353
Louisiana 5,725 6,525 8,050
Maine 7,221 9,016 15,707
Maryland 7,339 8,077 9,668
Massachusetts 7,575 9,343 14,038
Michigan 6,404 7,268 10,257
Minnesota 5,989 7,014 9,490
Mississippi 4,607 5,420 7,225
Missouri 5,287 6,457 9,378
Montana 4,946 7,572 17,000
Nebraska 5,063 7,801 14,147
Nevada 5,797 7,807 18,295
New Hampshire 6,542 8,489 12,341
New Jersey 8,620 10,630 15,157
New Mexico 5,924 8,205 12,883
New York 8,997 11,219 17,853
North Carolina 5,850 6,633 8,241
North Dakota 5,000 7,303 14,818
Ohio 5,848 6,735 9,410
Oklahoma 5,156 6,601 10,116
Oregon 6,393 7,408 15,451
Pennsylvania 6,346 7,625 10,307
Rhode Island 7,964 9,530 11,948
South Carolina 6,140 6,936 9,149
South Dakota 5,434 6,772 11,532
Tennessee 4,783 5,523 7,217
Texas 5,821 7,066 11,752
Utah 4,447 5,656 9,646
Vermont 6,577 8,818 13,512
Virginia 6,135 6,989 9,512
Washington 6,027 7,049 15,840
West Virginia 6,978 7,671 8,807
Wisconsin 7,053 8,294 10,133
Wyoming 7,492 9,539 16,327
Independent charter 3,952 6,545 12,133
 school districts

 Federal
 range Number of Number of
State ratio (1) districts students

United States 1.38 14,002 46,941,294
Alabama 0.33 128 726,367
Alaska 2.15 53 133,010
Arizona 1.86 230 864,264
Arkansas 0.55 310 449,161
California 1.01 971 6,066,162
Colorado 1.37 178 741,319
Connecticut 0.53 166 543,829
Delaware 0.37 16 105,752
District of Columbia ([dagger]) (2) 1 68,449
Florida 0.29 67 2,500,179
Georgia 0.46 179 1,466,836
Hawaii ([dagger]) (2) 1 184,546
Idaho 1.23 114 246,415
Illinois 1.03 891 2,047,836
Indiana 0.49 292 994,348
Iowa 0.45 371 485,932
Kansas 0.68 303 470,204
Kentucky 0.32 176 654,363
Louisiana 0.41 66 725,027
Maine 1.18 224 204,949
Maryland 0.32 24 860,640
Massachusetts 0.85 302 935,424
Michigan 0.60 553 1,661,301
Minnesota 0.58 342 832,369
Mississippi 0.57 152 492,198
Missouri 0.77 522 909,918
Montana 2.44 442 151,745
Nebraska 1.79 524 283,789
Nevada 2.16 17 356,814
New Hampshire 0.89 162 203,072
New Jersey 0.76 551 1,306,347
New Mexico 1.17 89 320,068
New York 0.98 687 2,846,644
North Carolina 0.41 117 1,296,156
North Dakota 1.96 218 105,936
Ohio 0.61 611 1,796,601
Oklahoma 0.96 542 621,573
Oregon 1.42 197 549,604
Pennsylvania 0.62 500 1,766,513
Rhode Island 0.50 36 156,624
South Carolina 0.49 85 674,347
South Dakota 1.12 173 127,129
Tennessee 0.51 137 897,695
Texas 1.02 1,045 4,115,727
Utah 1.17 40 481,182
Vermont 1.05 240 96,427
Virginia 0.55 132 1,162,045
Washington 1.63 296 1,009,200
West Virginia 0.26 55 282,145
Wisconsin 0.44 426 875,216
Wyoming 1.18 48 87,897
Independent charter 2.07 943 260,188
 school districts

([dagger]) Not applicable.

(1) The federal range ratio indicates the difference between the
district at the 5th percentile and the 95th percentile (when districts
are ranked by expenditures per student within the state) as a ratio of
the value to expenditures per student for the district at the 5th
percentile.

(2) The District of Columbia and Hawaii consist of one school district
each.

NOTE: National figures do not include independent charter school
districts, i.e., those not affiliated with a non-charter school
district. Charter schools that are affiliated with regular school
districts are included in the national and state figures. Only
regular school districts matching the Common Core of Data (CCD)
Agency Universe and with student membership > 0 were used in
creating this table. Districts with current expenditures per student
between $2,500 and $35,000 per student were included in the national
and state figures; 98.87 percent of school districts met this
criterion. Charter schools with revenues > 0 and expenditures > 0
were included in the charter school analysis; 99.79 percent of the
charter school districts met this criterion.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education
Statistics, Common Core of Data, "School District Finance Survey
(F-33)," FY 2002, version 1a.

Table 5. Current expenditures per student for unified school districts,
by state: School year 2001-02

 Expenditures per student

 5th Median 95th
State percentile percentile

United States $5,505 $7,157 $11,931
Alabama 5,410 6,042 7,207
Alaska 7,740 14,549 24,377
Arizona 4,619 5,938 11,382
Arkansas 5,116 5,813 7,947
California 6,105 6,984 11,077
Colorado 5,568 7,101 13,175
Connecticut 8,525 9,588 13,157
Delaware 7,359 8,742 10,077
District of Columbia ([dagger]) (2) 13,330 ([dagger]) (2)
Florida 5,432 6,015 7,012
Georgia 6,114 6,966 8,834
Hawaii ([dagger]) (2) 7,306 ([dagger]) (2)
Idaho 5,087 6,481 9,938
Illinois 5,487 6,794 8,733
Indiana 6,057 6,890 9,027
Iowa 5,924 6,784 8,052
Kansas 5,903 7,397 9,932
Kentucky 5,556 6,220 7,343
Louisiana 5,725 6,525 8,050
Maine 7,111 8,347 10,783
Maryland 7,339 8,077 9,668
Massachusetts 7,666 9,165 12,906
Michigan 6,422 7,252 9,832
Minnesota 5,989 6,978 9,164
Mississippi 4,607 5,391 6,680
Missouri 5,277 6,399 8,824
Montana 5,686 8,957 19,932
Nebraska 6,276 7,699 10,423
Nevada 5,797 7,665 18,295
New Hampshire 6,646 8,152 10,691
New Jersey 9,059 10,721 14,582
New Mexico 5,924 8,205 12,883
New York 8,952 11,092 16,435
North Carolina 5,850 6,633 8,241
North Dakota 5,152 7,053 11,687
Ohio 5,851 6,742 9,410
Oklahoma 5,115 6,514 9,586
Oregon 6,385 7,293 13,779
Pennsylvania 6,346 7,625 10,350
Rhode Island 7,964 9,461 11,948
South Carolina 6,140 6,936 9,149
South Dakota 5,434 6,689 10,170
Tennessee 4,804 5,523 7,207
Texas 5,821 7,026 11,208
Utah 4,447 5,656 9,646
Vermont 6,586 8,450 12,032
Virginia 6,135 6,989 9,512
Washington 6,104 6,962 13,784
West Virginia 6,978 7,671 8,807
Wisconsin 7,159 8,297 9,950
Wyoming 7,492 9,385 14,730
Independent charter 4,009 6,154 13,933
 school districts

 Number of Percent of
 Federal range districts districts
State ratio (1) unified unified

United States 1.17 10,629 75.9
Alabama 0.33 128 100.0
Alaska 2.15 53 100.0
Arizona 1.46 101 43.9
Arkansas 0.55 310 100.0
California 0.81 364 37.5
Colorado 1.37 178 100.0
Connecticut 0.54 113 68.1
Delaware 0.37 16 100.0
District of Columbia ([dagger]) (2) 1 100.0
Florida 0.29 67 100.0
Georgia 0.44 174 97.2
Hawaii ([dagger]) (2) 1 100.0
Idaho 0.95 108 94.7
Illinois 0.59 405 45.5
Indiana 0.49 291 99.7
Iowa 0.36 350 94.3
Kansas 0.68 303 100.0
Kentucky 0.32 171 97.2
Louisiana 0.41 66 100.0
Maine 0.52 111 49.6
Maryland 0.32 24 100.0
Massachusetts 0.68 210 69.5
Michigan 0.53 524 94.8
Minnesota 0.53 327 95.6
Mississippi 0.45 148 97.4
Missouri 0.67 449 86.0
Montana 2.51 55 12.4
Nebraska 0.66 245 46.8
Nevada 2.16 16 94.1
New Hampshire 0.61 67 41.4
New Jersey 0.61 218 39.6
New Mexico 1.17 89 100.0
New York 0.84 638 92.9
North Carolina 0.41 117 100.0
North Dakota 1.27 164 75.2
Ohio 0.61 610 99.8
Oklahoma 0.87 430 79.3
Oregon 1.16 178 90.4
Pennsylvania 0.63 498 99.6
Rhode Island 0.50 32 88.9
South Carolina 0.49 85 100.0
South Dakota 0.87 168 97.1
Tennessee 0.50 123 89.8
Texas 0.93 979 93.7
Utah 1.17 40 100.0
Vermont 0.83 37 15.4
Virginia 0.55 132 100.0
Washington 1.26 246 83.1
West Virginia 0.26 55 100.0
Wisconsin 0.39 368 86.4
Wyoming 0.97 46 95.8
Independent charter 2.48 257 27.3
 school districts

 Percent of
 students in
 Number of unified
State students districts

United States 43,405,395 92.5
Alabama 726,367 100.0
Alaska 133,010 100.0
Arizona 551,987 63.9
Arkansas 449,161 100.0
California 4,480,470 73.9
Colorado 741,319 100.0
Connecticut 511,008 94.0
Delaware 105,752 100.0
District of Columbia 68,449 100.0
Florida 2,500,179 100.0
Georgia 1,464,902 99.9
Hawaii 184,546 100.0
Idaho 246,281 99.9
Illinois 1,298,575 63.4
Indiana 994,112 100.0
Iowa 482,404 99.3
Kansas 470,204 100.0
Kentucky 652,514 99.7
Louisiana 725,027 100.0
Maine 177,396 86.6
Maryland 860,640 100.0
Massachusetts 869,432 92.9
Michigan 1,659,757 99.9
Minnesota 830,173 99.7
Mississippi 490,857 99.7
Missouri 898,337 98.7
Montana 18,404 12.1
Nebraska 271,346 95.6
Nevada 356,725 100.0
New Hampshire 157,793 77.7
New Jersey 980,363 75.0
New Mexico 320,068 100.0
New York 2,796,260 98.2
North Carolina 1,296,156 100.0
North Dakota 102,500 96.8
Ohio 1,796,546 100.0
Oklahoma 599,534 96.5
Oregon 549,130 99.9
Pennsylvania 1,765,610 99.9
Rhode Island 154,482 98.6
South Carolina 674,347 100.0
South Dakota 126,031 99.1
Tennessee 875,998 97.6
Texas 4,105,037 99.7
Utah 481,182 100.0
Vermont 34,632 35.9
Virginia 1,162,045 100.0
Washington 999,210 99.0
West Virginia 282,145 100.0
Wisconsin 839,670 95.9
Wyoming 87,322 99.3
Independent charter 85,179 32.7
 school districts

([dagger]) Not applicable.

(1) The federal range ratio indicates the difference between the
district at the 5th percentile and the 95th percentile (when districts
are ranked by expenditures per student within the state) as a ratio of
the value to expenditures per student for the district at the 5th
percentile.

(2) The District of Columbia and Hawaii consist of one school district
each.

NOTE: National figures do not include independent charter school
districts, i.e., those not affiliated with a non-charter school
district. Charter schools that are affiliated with regular school
districts are included in the national and state figures. Only
regular school districts matching the Common Core of Data (CCD) Agency
Universe and with student membership > 0 were used in creating this
table. Districts with current expenditures per student between $2,500
and $35,000 per student were included in the national and state
figures; 98.87 percent of school districts met this criterion. Charter
schools with revenues > 0 and expenditures > 0 were included in the
charter school analysis; 99.79 percent of the charter school districts
met this criterion.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education
Statistics, Common Core of Data, "School District Finance Survey
(F-33)," FY 2002, version 1a.