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Cited by 61School Choice and PerformancePolitics, Economics, and Education PolicyLocal Government Finance and Decentralization

School Finance Reform, the Distribution of School Spending, and the Distribution of SAT Scores

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Card, David, Payne, A. Abigail·1998·National Bureau of Economic Research
DOI 10.3386/w6766
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Abstract

In this paper we study the effects of school finance reforms on the distribution of school spending across richer and poorer districts, and the effects of spending equalization on the distribution of student outcomes across children from different family backgrounds. We use school district data from the 1977 and 1992 Censuses of Governments to measure the correlation between state funding per pupil and median family income in each district. We find that states where the school finance system was declared unconstitutional in the 1980s increased the relative funding of low-income districts. Increases in state funds available to poorer districts led to increases in the relative spending of these districts, and to some equalization in spending across richer and poorer districts. We then use micro samples of SAT scores from this same period to measure the effects of spending inequality on the inequality in test scores between children from different family backgrounds. We find some evidence that the equalization of spending across districts leads to a narrowing of test score outcomes across family background groups.

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Authors
Card, D., & Payne, A. A.
ORCID
Venue
National Bureau of Economic Research
Publisher
National Bureau of Economic Research
Published
1998-10
DOI
10.3386/w6766
OpenAlex
W3024051384
Cited by
61
References
0
Citations by year
2016: 1 · 2015: 1 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
Type
report
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • National Bureau of Economic Research (publishedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Politics, Economics, and Education Policy
  • Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Local Government Finance and Decentralization
Keywords
school finance reform, SAT scores, family background, test score gaps, median family income, school districts, selection bias, educational inequality

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