Exemplary approaches to school-based budgeting are examined in this paper. Interviews were conducted with district staff involved in implementing school-based budget reforms in five school districts--Chicago, Dade County (Florida), Detroit, Los Angeles, and Edmonton (Canada)--and with state-level staff in California, Florida, Kentucky, and England. The first section offers a review of literature, with a focus on key school finance issues. The second and third sections analyze the design and organization of different approaches to school-based budgeting and highlight the various ways in which local districts and states encourage school-based budgeting. The fourth section proposes a set of initiatives for state and local policymakers to enhance implementation while maintaining fiscal accountability. The recommendation is made for creation of a partnership between states and districts for implementing school-based management, with responsibility varying according to states' different political cultures. Specifically, the partnership would be responsible for specifying the "ends" of the educational system and school sites would have authority over the "means." Four tables are included. (16 references) (LMI)