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8/18/2008 12:00 AMJeff Van Wychen, Minnesota 2020  It's a number that should make Minnesotans cringe: four out of five Minnesota school districts have dropped in real per-pupil revenue since 2003. That means 80% of our schools are trying to do more with less but it's not working. Our schools are falling behind. It should come as no surprise that nearly every school district has seen a decline in real per pupil state aid at the same time. Among the hardest hit districts, real state aid has declined by seventeen percent since 2003. These findings are based on actual and projected revenue and pupil count data from the Minnesota Department of Education adjusted for inflation in government purchases.* Beginning in school fiscal year (FY) 2003, the state dramatically increased its share of the school funding pie. However, since then, the state's commitment to education funding has dramatically fallen. In 275 of the 340 Minnesota school districts, real per pupil revenue in FY 2009 will be less than in FY 2003. The graph below breaks Minnesota school districts into five equal groups (quintiles) based on the percentage gain or decline in real per pupil revenue from FY 2003 to FY 2009. Each quintile consists of 68 school districts.  The quintile with the greatest revenue loss (i.e., the 68 school districts with the greatest revenue loss from FY 2003 to 2009) had an average real per pupil revenue decline of nearly twelve percent over the last six years. The second, third, and fourth quintiles experienced smaller revenue losses. Only districts in the fifth quintile experienced a revenue increase. Despite revenue losses, nearly every district in the state (335 out of 340) experienced an increase in real per pupil property taxes. How is it that school revenues are declining at the same time that property taxes are increasing? Three words: declining state support. On a statewide basis, real per pupil state aid to Minnesota school districts has declined by $1,262 (13.5 percent) in constant FY 2009 dollars. Approximately two-thirds of this revenue loss was replaced by property tax increases. However, a third of the state-created hole was left unfilled, resulting in a net loss of school revenue. The state aid decline has not been evenly distributed among Minnesota school districts. The graph below breaks Minnesota school districts into quintiles based on the percentage decline in real per pupil state aid from FY 2003 to FY 2009.  The average aid loss in each of the quintiles is significant. Even among the fifth of school districts with the smallest aid loss, the average real per pupil decline was in excess of six percent. Among the fifth of school districts with the largest aid loss, the average decline was 16.8 percent. Click here for information on the real per pupil change in school revenue, levy, and state aid from 2003 to 2009 for each Minnesota school district. [PDF] This analysis based on data from the Minnesota Department of Education is consistent with earlier findings from Minnesota 2020 based on information from the Minnesota Department of Finance. Both analyses demonstrate that school property tax increases have been insufficient to replace real state aid cuts, resulting in a net loss of revenue for public schools. Of course, anti-tax ideologues will continue to claim that real per pupil school revenues are increasing. However, repeating a falsehood will not make it true. Claims regarding growing school revenues are generally based on incomplete measures of revenue, inappropriate inflation adjustments, or both. Based on the most inclusive measures of school revenue available and taking into account the real rate of inflation in government purchases, there is no doubt that school revenues have been falling during the era of "no new taxes." Minnesota progressives need to rebut right-wing propaganda by keeping public attention focused on the real facts-and those facts clearly show that school revenue in Minnesota has not kept pace with inflation. It is this decline in school revenue that has lead to teacher layoffs, larger class sizes, fewer course offerings, and an overall deterioration in Minnesota public education. The fight over adequate funding for Minnesota public schools is the fight for Minnesota's future. In that fight, the facts are on our side. Let's use them, making the case for public education investments. Minnesota 2020 Fellow John Fitzgerald contributed to this report. * The categories of school revenue included in this analysis are: general education, special education, career technical, integration, alternative facilities, deferred maintenance, "miscellaneous levies," operating capital technology, "additional lunch," and "additional telecommunications." This data is drawn from MDE spreadsheets and includes all revenue categories for which data is available on a statewide district-specific basis through FY 2009. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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