“By the Numbers” is a series of short articles evaluating the finances of Michigan local governments, primarily through the use of U.S. Census reports on Local Government Revenues and Expenditures by Type of Government, and State and Local Government Revenues and Expenditures. These articles look at how Michigan compares over time to the rest of the nation.
Several articles have benchmarked changes in revenues for local governments comparing the years 2002, 2007, and 2012. Changes in revenue collections, as well as transfers from the State and Federal governments, have been evaluated for each type of local government in Michigan – municipalities, counties, townships, and school districts. Another installment looked at two distinct types of own source revenues: taxes and fees.
Later articles benchmark Michigan’s state and local expenditures on various categories of services on a per capita basis as compared to other states, using information from 1992, 1997, 2002, 2007, and 2012. Expense categories analyzed include payroll, administrative costs, and public safety. The entry below is focused on K-12 education funding.
Finally, overall results will be evaluated with a critical look at Michigan’s current system of funding local governments and the services they provide.
The funding of our educational programs has been a hotly debated issue dating back decades. The passage of Proposal A has not diminished the fervor over appropriate funding levels for elementary and secondary education.
There is no other public service, or private for that matter, that is more closely scrutinized than K-12 education. We rigorously test students each year and then post the collective results publically in as many ways possible to inform everyone on how well this form of local government is performing. Also, no other public employee has as many close personal relationships with those that they serve than does a teacher.
Because of this close scrutiny, which is not unique to Michigan, the educational system drives more decisions on where a person decides to raise a family than any other government service. The educational system can be of great assistance to an economic development plan or it can be a great hindrance.
The U.S. Census figures for state and local expenditures for elementary and secondary education paint a very dramatic picture. In 1992, two years before enactment of Proposal A, Michigan ranked 10th in the nation in per capita expenditures for K-12 education. Once Proposal A passed, Michigan maintained its national standing in 1997, 2002, and 2007, with Michigan ranking 8th, 7th, and 8th respectively in per capita expenditures. However, by 2012, Michigan had changed drastically. Between 2007 and 2012, Michigan’s expenditures for K-12 education dropped 10 percent, dropping the state from 8th in the nation in expenditures to 25th.
The direction the state has taken on K-12 funding since 2007 should be setting off alarm bells. This very visible public service is the key indicator many will use to judge all services provided by state and local governments. If Michigan cannot support our schools – the public service most legislators indicate as their top priority – than what does that say about all other services provided?
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