Is annual funding for Wisconsin public school districts $16,000 per student?
By Tom Kertscher
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YES
In 2021-22, the latest year for which data are available, Wisconsin's K-12 public school districts received an average of $16,859 in revenue per student, according to the state Department of Public Instruction.
That's up from $16,017 in 2020-21.
Most of the funds are from state aids and local property taxes.
The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau provided a breakdown of the 2020-21 figures:
State aid: $7,537 (47.1%)
Local property tax: $6,530 (40.8%)
Federal aid: $1,421 (8.9%)
Other local revenue: $529 (3.3%)
A Republican-authored 2023-25 state budget approved by the Legislature and awaiting action by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers would provide schools an additional $1 billion over the two years.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Wisconsin State Legislature State Aid to School Districts
Wisconsin State Legislature Public instruction
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