According to a report released recently by the Census Bureau, Colorado spends less educating K-12 students than most other states.
The report, which looks at data from 2006-2007, shows Colorado spent $8,167 per student, 40th in the nation. Colorado was well below the average of $9,666 and nearly half of the amount spent by New York, the top state, which spent $15,981 per pupil in 2007. New Jersey ($15,691) and the District of Columbia ($14,324) had the next-highest spending. States spending the least per pupil were Utah ($5,683), Idaho ($6,625) and Tennessee ($7,113).
An article in the Denver Post notes that:
Colorado fared even worse in how much of its personal income goes toward public education. It spent the second-lowest amount per $1,000 of income, ahead of only Florida.
“I think this study kind of confirms, to be perfectly honest, what we’ve known: that the underlying tax structure that supports Colorado public schools has, in some cases, not been working well,” said Dwight Jones, the state’s commissioner of education.
State Sen. Chris Romer, vice chairman of the Senate’s education committee, said Colorado holds an average ranking academically even with the low spending, according to the Post. “The reality is we’ve been paying dollar-store prices and getting Sears quality,” he said. Romer estimated it would cost about $1.4 billion more to reach the national average in spending.
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