Public elementary and secondary school spending in New York reached an all-time high of $20,600 per-pupil in 2013-14 school year, topping all states and exceeding the $11,009 per-pupil national average by 87 percent, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released today.

The difference between school spending in New York and in the rest of the country continues to get wider — up from 63 percent above average in 2005-06.

New York’s public elementary and secondary schools (excluding charter schools) had 2.6 million pupils and spent more than $62 billion — exceeded only by California, which spent about $69 billion on a public school system with 6.2 million pupils.

School spending in New York was driven primarily by instructional salaries and benefits — which, at $14,289 per pupil, were 114 percent above the national average of $6,654, the census data show.

In the category of “support services,” including central and school administration, New York ranked seventh with spending of $5,873 per pupil. That was 51 percent above the national average—but if New York had only spent the national average in the support category, it still would have had the highest total per-pupil spending in the country.

Below is the 50-state table. Note: New York also continues to spend considerably more than neighboring northeastern states with similarly powerful education lobbies and high living costs. On a per-pupil basis, New York’s school expenditures were 15 percent higher than New Jersey’s, 16 percent higher than Connecticut’s and 37 percent higher than Massachusetts’.

2014 Per-Pupil Spending by Elementary and Secondary Schools
With Change From 2013
(view horizontally or swipe right on mobile for full table)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau