The U.S. Census Bureau has released its education finance data for FY 2009. I'm compiling it as I have the time, and will write about it when I'm done. But this year, no one should have to wait for, or rely on, me. As they said they would do when I attended a symposium a year or two ago, the Bureau’s Governments Division is releasing more “derived data,” that is data that has been tabulated to be more comparable. For example, its current report features extensive revenue and expenditure data per $1,000 of local residents’ personal income and per student, with data per student by category. In fact, spending per student by category is available not only for states, but also for individual school districts with more than 10,000 students. Including, of course, the City of New York.
I’ve seen two MSM discussions of this data. The New York Times did not see fit to write about how much is spent in its own home city and state, but did write that nationally school spending wasn’t going up as much. And WNYC mentioned total per capita spending for the U.S., NYC and New York State, but not spending by category. But the MSM could look at that PDF report and write a comparison of spending by category right now. Yet it hasn’t. Instead, the dishonest, self serving propaganda about the proposed NYC budget by various self-interested groups has been duly reported on, on a “he said she said” basis. Is there something is that data that no one wants to talk about? Or is the problem that the Census Bureau doesn’t have a staff of flacks writing press releases that, combined with a quote in opposition from one of the usual suspects, constitutes a story? The actual NYC story is laid out below.
Take the data in this report, tables 8 and 17. If you want to adjust per student figures for the cost of living when comparing NYC to the U.S., as I do, multiply the city’s figures by 0.759. (See attached data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis). The New Jersey State total factor is 0.84. You’ll have to wait for me for Downstate Suburbs with adjustment, and a separate Upstate New York total, along with data for every school district in NY State rather than just those with 10,000 or more students.
Then look at the table on page 35 of this report, and the line for the Department of Education, to see what the city was spending on schools back in FY 2009, including pensions, health insurance, debt service, etc. That matches up with the FY 2009 Census Bureau data, which can be compared with the U.S. average.
Then look at the tables on pages 56 to 58 of this report, to see how the city’s education spending has changed from the year when it could be compared with the U.S. average, FY 2009, to the present year, FY 2011, and the FY 2012 budget proposal. And remember that from FY 2009, when the city’s spending by category compared with the U.S. average was what it was, to FY 2012, New Yorkers will have been told to live with 11,000 fewer teachers as a result of “cuts.” Cuts? What cuts?
Perhaps someone else would like to explain. But even if they don’t, I will, with a comparison back to FY 1996 added in.