Contact: Lise Bang-Jensen

(518) 434-3100

The often opaque world of school finances has become more transparent with a new tool that allows New Yorkers to analyze how their school districts spend money and to compare them to nearly 700 other districts around the state.

Benchmarking New York–developed by the Empire Center for Public Policy and The Business Council’s Public Policy Institute–is a searchable database of school district spending (excluding only New York City) during the 2007-08 school year. The tool can be found at SeeThroughNY.net, the Empire Center’s transparency web site where comparable Benchmarking data for local governments was posted in April.

Highlights of the data:

School districts spent an average of $10,692 per pupil on instruction, which includes teacher salaries, supplies and special education, but excludes employee benefits, transportation, capital construction and other expenditures. Lancaster CSD in Erie County spent $5,700 per pupil on instruction, the lowest in the state. The highest spender was Wainscott CSD, a Suffolk County district with 17 students, which spent $97,346 on instruction per pupil.

Health insurance for teachers, staff and retired employees cost an average of $2,194 per pupil. Ranking #1 was Newcomb CSD in Essex County at $12,999 per pupil.

Striking similarities in per pupil spending can be seen in comparisons of some districts. For example, Chappaqua CSD, an affluent and high achieving district in Westchester County spent a total of $23,872 per pupil, slightly more than the Troy City SD, an urban district with lower academic scores in Rensselaer County, which spent $23,486 per pupil. Costs of instruction were similar: Chappaqua, $11,555; and Troy, $11,705.

“New Yorkers spend more per pupil on public education than any other state, but don’t get impressive results. The high costs drive up property taxes, making New York a more difficult place to grow businesses and create jobs. The new data on Benchmarking New York will allow residents and businesses to see how their school district is spending their money,” said Kenneth Adams, president and CEO of The Business Council. “It will help them see if they are getting value as taxpayers.”

“Comparisons are an essential tool for taxpayers who want to evaluate how well their school districts are operating,” said E.J. McMahon, director of the Empire Center.

For additional understanding of school spending, visit SeeThroughNY, which also posts salaries of school employees as well as labor contracts for teachers and superintendents.

Click here for a regional breakdown of total and instructional spending per pupil.