California school – A new national analysis shows California’s education funding has improved, but lawmakers debate whether “effort” should be higher.
California’s public schools are receiving more money than a decade ago, yet a national benchmark suggests the state may still be leaving room to do more.
State per-student funding has climbed sharply in recent years. In 2010, California ranked near the bottom nationally at $8,826 per student. By 2023, it had risen to 13th in the country, reaching $19,984.
Even with those gains. education advocates point to another measure: “effort. ” or the share of a state’s economy earmarked for public school funding.. In the most recent national study by the Education Law Center. California placed 20th in funding “effort” in 2023. meaning a smaller portion of the state’s overall economic output is directed toward public TK-12 education than in many other states.
That “effort” ranking reflects a notable jump for California.. The study, which uses 2023 data, found California rose from 34th the prior year.. The same research indicated only Hawaii improved more in the same period.. Yet the report also underscores why the debate continues: states such as South Carolina. Kansas. and West Virginia outrank California on “effort. ” even though California’s per-student funding remains higher than theirs.
The comparison becomes especially important because California’s economy is larger but costs are also higher.. While California has one of the highest gross domestic products in the nation. getting to 20th in “effort” is still seen as a meaningful step rather than a final destination.. The argument from critics is that higher costs of living and other expenses can reduce how far education dollars stretch.
On paper. it can seem counterintuitive that increasing “effort” could boost funding in California. but the reasoning ties to the relationship between state wealth and how budgets are structured.. The study’s analysis highlights that if California matched the “effort” level of Kentucky—ranked 14th—California schools would have more money.. The report explains that Kentucky would prioritize more of its GDP to education. and despite having a lower per-capita GDP. it would end up with less overall funding than California.. In other words. the dollars can diverge based on both economic size and the percentage of that economy a state chooses to dedicate to schools.
Looking at the top performers. the study indicates that many of the states with the highest “effort” are concentrated in the Northeast. with Vermont leading the ranking.. Vermont allocates 5.44% of its GDP to public schools, the report notes, and it spends over $7,000 more per pupil than California.. The contrast is striking because Vermont’s per-capita GDP is far lower—by $28. 559 less than California—yet it directs a larger share of its economy toward education.
The report also points to scale and population as factors that can complicate comparisons.. Vermont is described as having a smaller overall population—less than San Francisco—while other higher-effort states show different patterns.. Even among larger states. the study notes that New Jersey. Pennsylvania. Illinois. and Michigan put more total dollars into education funding than California. despite having state GDPs more than $10. 000 lower per capita.
For California policymakers. the central question is not whether funding has improved. but what the state should do with the next phase of school budgeting.. The “effort” measure reframes the discussion away from per-student totals alone. focusing instead on whether California is dedicating enough of its economic output to TK-12 education relative to other states.
This is where cost of living enters the policy debate.. When everyday expenses are higher. the same nominal education funding can buy fewer resources—whether for staffing. classroom materials. or services that support student needs.. That helps explain why advocates argue that even a rising per-student figure may not fully resolve the underlying challenge: ensuring that school funding keeps pace with both economic capacity and local realities.
The study also suggests that California’s recent jump in “effort” matters because it was not gradual.. The move from 41st to 34th and then to 20th within the study’s timeframe indicates that California has already made budgetary choices that increased education’s share of the state economy.. The question for the next budget cycle is whether the trajectory continues or stalls.
More broadly. the findings point to a policy tradeoff many states have faced: should education funding be treated as a baseline expense tied to economic growth. or as a priority that can grow faster than the overall economy by allocating a larger GDP share?. In this debate. California’s rising per-student funding is one part of the story. while “effort” is what lawmakers and advocates use to judge whether the state is keeping up with comparable peers.
MISRYOUM Education News notes that the national analysis was reported as a study using 2023 data from the Education Law Center.. It places California’s current position within a wider national ranking. offering both context for recent progress and a framework for assessing whether additional funding is possible through changes in how much of the state economy is directed to public education.
(SEO details: This article is part of the MISRYOUM Education News section.)
California school funding education effort per-pupil spending TK-12 funding Education Law Center state education policy budget priorities