Title: The States That Spend the Most (and the Least) on Education
Headings: The States That Spend the Most (and the Least) on Education
The States That Spend the Most (and the Least) on Education
Several factors are behind the drastic differences in funding.
Revenues
Teacher Salaries
Employee Benefits
Cost of Living
Demographics
Class Sizes
Administrative Costs
State and Local Policy
Education Spending by State
Mike Maciag

Content: Districts employing more experienced teachers or those with advanced degrees spend significantly more on salaries. Employee Benefits
Teacher pensions, health insurance, tuition reimbursement and other employee benefits add up to a sizable portion of school spending. Employee benefits for teachers account for about $1,700 in spending per pupil nationally and are as high as $4,127 per student in Alaska and $4,660 in New York. Of course, states with more generous retirement benefits tend to spend more. Pension expenditures, however, don’t fully register in states that underfund their retirement systems. Cost of Living
As one would expect, the top overall spenders tend to be states with a higher cost of living. The Bureau of Economic Analysis calculates regional price parities, which measure prices of goods and services across states. This data suggests that costs are highest in the District of Columbia, Hawaii and New York. But not all states spending more on schools have higher overall living costs. Rhode Island and Wyoming have regional price parities below the national average, but still rank among the top 10 highest-spending states.