1. Finance in Education Chapter 9

2. Court Decision Guidelines Guidelines that have emerged from state and federal court decisions: 1. Financing education is a state responsibility. 2. They usually favor the tax payer over the school district. 3. School finance funds, including tax monies, are state funds, and not local ones. Local school districts are agencies of the state and are in reality acting for the state. 4. School taxes should not be imposed. 5. legislature has complete control of public school funds.

3. Generally the courts tend to reflect the values and attitudes of a majority of the people toward the issues and questions o which they are ruling.

4. Serrano v. Priest (1971) Landmark decision on August 30, 1971, when the California Supreme Court rules that John Serrano ’ s complaint against the state ’ s public school financial pattern was justifiable. Educational expenditures per person in California ranged from $274 in one district to $1,710 in another This inequality was due to the difference in the assessed valuation of property per pupil to be educated. A tax effort in the poorer district was twice as high as that in the wealthier The court declared the state ’ s public school financing system to be unconstitutional, violating the equal protection provisions of the 14 th Ammendment

5. Consequences of Serrano New era introduced which required school funding to be determined on some basis other than district property wealth. A period of retrenchment Concern about the spiraling cost of educational programs and services.

6. San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez (1973) The first and only equal protection case concerning school finance to be considered by the high court to date March 21, 1973, U.S. Supreme Court, by a vote of 5 to 4, reversed the lower court decision Negated all related pending federal court actions Ruled that education is not a constitutional federal interest

7. State Court Cases States that followed the Serrano philosophy found education to be a fundamental right for the students in those several states, or found school financing patterns to be in violation of state education clauses. States that followed the Rodriguez philosophy found no justifications for equal-per-pupil expenditures in their state constitutions or ruled that the matter was for legislatures to decide.

8. Finance Reform or Tax Reduction The impact of the courts was altered by a tax- reduction movement and/or legislatures deciding they did not have the funds to comply. The tax-reduction movement was heightened by the passage of Proposition 13 in California. Several States followed California ’ s lead in reducing taxes.