New School Year Brings Steep Cuts in State Funding for Schools

As a new school year begins, elementary and high schools are receiving less state funding than last year in the great majority of states for which the necessary data are available, and are now funded at below pre-recession levels in most of these states. In at least 10 states, the shortfall compared with pre-recession levels exceeds 10 percent.  These are the results of an initial analysis of state budget documents in 24 states where the necessary data were available. These 24 states include about two-thirds of the nation's school-age population.