Discusses the education financing system approved by the Kentucky legislature following the 1989 Kentucky Supreme Court decision striking down the previous educational financing system. The overall structure of the new system is basically sound. The allocation formula is comparatively simple and should permit both equitable administration and a…

Discusses issues related to formula funding and budgeting in higher education, in general, and in academic libraries, specifically. The strengths and weaknesses of state funding formulas and academic library budgeting formulas are evaluated, based on a survey of libraries in eight states. The role of coordinating agencies and structures is also…

District-level fiscal equity, when achieved, will not necessarily result in a fairer distribution of educational resources. School-level inequities generally exceed those found at the district level in most states. If districts were required to distribute funds to schools on a per-pupil basis, school-level equalization could be accomplished…

Explores the recent status of funding formula use among the states, focusing on changes over the last eight years. Determines how guidelines or formulas drive usage and discusses innovations in formula design. Funding formulas are becoming more complex and are used to protect base budgets and achieve equity. Although formula usage will not…

Confronting state funding problems and the federal government's decreasing fiscal responsibility for education, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Elementary and Secondary Education heard compelling testimony last fall from Kern Alexander, who described the "coming apart of America." Pointing to profound inequalities within states, he urged…

During 1995 to 1996, a state-appointed task force examined historical information about New Mexico's school funding, the context of K-12 education, major funding-formula changes since 1974, data from interviews and surveys of school personnel, and data on fiscal capacity, tax effort, equity, and costs. Funding formula changes were recommended. (21…

Under the 1950 federal Impact Aid law, school districts can receive federal assistance to meet financial burdens due to acquisition of real property by the United States, and to educate children who reside on federal property and whose parents work on federal property. Congress is to reauthorize or extend Impact Aid in 1999. (MLH)

The "65 percent solution," developed by First Class Education, a national advocacy group, states that 65 percent of a school's operating budget be devoted to "in-class instruction" as opposed to "out-of-classroom" purposes. One of the unintended consequences of this "solution," according to this author, is that it provides another basis for…

This article discusses the city of Denver's poll on a new teacher-compensation plan. The poll showed those who had made up their minds to be about evenly divided, leaving more than 20 percent undecided. Proponents have been making the rounds at schools in recent weeks to try winning teachers over to their side. If members of the Denver Classroom…

This research examined the level of equity of the public school funding system in Texas that in September of 2004 was held to be unconstitutional by a state district judge. The study also introduces a mechanism, referred to as the Revenue-to-Population Index or RTP Index, which compares funding equity within the unconstitutional system among 1031…

This study seeks to determine if a Midwestern group of diocesan Catholic schools considers it their mission to educate students of all abilities, the extent to which students with special needs are included in the population of Catholic schools, the types of special needs served, how students with special needs are served when included, whether…

The paper discusses two reforms in Ontario's long-term care. The first is the commercialization of home care as a result of the implementation of a "managed competition" delivery model. The second is the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care's privileging of "health care" over "social care" through changes to which…

Policy makers and educators in the U.S. have recently shown considerable interest in the concept of weighted student funding (WSF) as a means of financing primary and secondary schools. WSF appeals both to conservatives, who see it as a way to promote parental choice and school autonomy, and to progressives, who are attracted by the call of extra…

In its recent report, the Governor's Committee on Education Excellence proposes a major restructuring of California's school finance system, replacing most of the separate programs through which revenue now flows from the state to local school districts with a base program and a targeted program. The base program would serve the educational needs…

This memorandum describes the calculations used to figure the instructional subsidy for postsecondary education in Ohio, focusing on why the model operates as it does and the implications of the current funding model. The two principle factors in the instructional subsidy model are institutional enrollments and actual costs. The model begins with…