Census Bureau: K-12 State Education Spending Saw Largest Increase Since 2008

New numbers show per-pupil spending nationwide increased by 2.7 percent from 2013 to 2014

MacIver News Service | June 10, 2016

[Washington, D.C…] State spending in K-12 schools increased by the largest amount since 2008, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau report. The report examines spending nationwide in fiscal year 2014, the most recent year for which data is available.

Average state per-pupil spending was $11,009, up by 2.7 percent from 2013. At $20,610, New York spent the most. Utah’s $6,500 per-pupil expenses ranked the lowest. Wisconsin spent $11,186 per student, or 22nd most in the country.

Across the country, state governments contributed the greatest share of public school funding, at 46.7 percent of total revenue. Wisconsin’s state contribution amounted to 51.9 percent of school revenue, according to the report. However, an October 2015 Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) memo shows that the Wisconsin’s share of K-12 education funding in the 2013-15 school year was 61.99 percent.

Read the full report issued by the Educational Finance Branch here.