With systems of accountability for student achievement now widely in place, state policymakers and others are applying the principle on another front by trying to hold schools more responsible for how they spend their money. Auditors in some states regularly calculate the percentages that districts spend on classroom resources compared with administration, while other states are scrutinizing school spending for fraud and inefficiency. Now, a new national group is lobbying states to enact laws ensuring that 65 percent of school budgets are spent on classroom instruction. The organizers of First Class Education contend that schools waste billions of dollars a year on administrative costs. Proposals for greater financial accountability follow naturally from efforts to improve student learning and close academic gaps between different racial and ethnic groups. While efforts to analyze spending and its impact on student achievement are laudable, one school finance expert said, the ultimate solutions aren't always simple. For example, funneling extra dollars to classroom teachers might not be the wisest course if the teachers don't have the knowledge and skills they need to use the new resources effectively, said Jacob E. Adams Jr., a research associate professor at the University of Washington, in Seattle.