The drop in education expenditures after 2007–2008 was greater in high-poverty districts: Change in total per-student expenditures compared with 2007–2008, by district poverty (adjusted for inflation and state cost-of living)
| Low-poverty districts | Medium-low-poverty districts | Medium-high-poverty districts | High-poverty districts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007/2008 | $0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008/2009 | 80 | 240 | 140 | 40 |
| 2009/2010 | 240 | 440 | 250 | 10 |
| 2010/2011 | 690 | 480 | 10 | -340 |
| 2011/2012 | 210 | 110 | -90 | -740 |
| 2012/2013 | 480 | 180 | -290 | -980 |
| 2013/2014 | 550 | 300 | -90 | -600 |
| 2014/2015 | 900 | 840 | 30 | -420 |
| 2015/2016 | 1,070 | 1,120 | 380 | -260 |
| 2016/2017 | 1,570 | 1,170 | 620 | 130 |
| 2017/2018 | 1,840 | 1,370 | 910 | 380 |
Notes: Amounts are in 2019–2020 dollars, rounded to the closest $10, and adjusted for each state's cost of living. Low-poverty districts are districts whose poverty rates (for children ages 5 through 17) are in the bottom fourth of the poverty distribution; high-poverty districts are districts whose poverty rates are in the top fourth of the poverty distribution.
Extended notes: Sample includes districts serving elementary schools only, secondary schools only, or both; districts with nonmissing and nonzero numbers of students; and districts with nonmissing charter information. Amounts are in 2019–2020 dollars using the consumer price index from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS-CPI 2021) and rounded to the closest $10. Amounts are adjusted for each state’s cost-of living using the historical regional Price Parities (RPPs) from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA 2021). 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 for that group; medium-low-poverty districts are districts whose school-age children’s poverty rate is in the second fourth (25th–50th percentile); medium-high-poverty districts are districts whose school-age children’s poverty rate is in the third fourth (50th–75th percentile); in high-poverty districts, the rate is in the top fourth. Amounts are unweighted across districts.
Sources: 2007–2008 to 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 2021a).
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