Chart: Districts serving poorer students have less to spend on education than those serving wealthier students: Total per-student revenues and expenditures by district poverty level, 2017–2018 (2019–2020 school year dollars)

Figure C

Districts serving poorer students have less to spend on education than those serving wealthier students: Total per-student revenues and expenditures by district poverty level, 2017–2018 (2019–2020 school year dollars)

	Low-poverty districts	Medium-low poverty districts	Medium-high poverty districts	High-poverty districts
Total revenue per student	$19,280	17,470	16,660	16,570
Total expenditures per student	$15,910	14,410	13,940	14,030

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Notes: Amounts are in 2019–2020 dollars and rounded to the closest $10. Low-poverty districts are districts whose poverty rate for school-age children (children ages 5 through 17) is in the bottom fourth of the poverty distribution; high-poverty districts are districts whose poverty rate is in the top fourth of the poverty distribution.

Sources: 2017–2018 Local Education Agency Finance Survey (F-33) microdata from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES-LEAFS 2021) and Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) data from the U.S. Census Bureau (Urban Institute 2021).

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Public education funding in the U.S. needs an overhaul: How a larger federal role would boost equity and shield children from disinvestment during downturns

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