Safety, Growth, and Equity: School Facilities
Across the country, aging infrastructure and a growing population have led to a massive need for modernizing old schools and constructing new ones. School construction costs reached an all-time high in 2004: nationally, over $29 billion was spent on K–12 school construction, and almost $51.4 billion is projected to be spent during 2007–2009.[1]
While all states provide money for school districts’ operating expenses, historically school buildings have been considered local assets that were most appropriately paid for by local taxpayers. As a result, districts with low property values or small proportions of voters with school-aged children faced the significant challenge of raising revenues to improve the quality and quantity of school buildings. Over time this led to great inequity among schools in different communities. With better understanding of the effect of facilities on student learning and with concerns about adequacy and equity in providing schools, states have begun to play a larger role in paying for school capital expenditures.
In most cases, this larger role in funding school construction has been sparked by lawsuits. Plaintiffs have argued that disparity in the quality of school facilities from district to district violates state constitutional requirements. Across the country, courts have agreed, pushing states to adopt new policies that provide for more equitable investment in public school facilities.
Today, states’ share of school construction costs still varies significantly from place to place. Some states continue to provide little or no money for school facilities construction, while others, such as Arizona and Ohio, have assumed more responsibility for school construction planning and funding, contributing up to 100 percent of construction costs.
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[1]Joe Agron, "33rd Annual Official Education Construction Report," American School and University Magazine, May 2007, available at http://asumag.com/Construction/Construction%20Report%202007.pdf