Reviews the school-level resource-allocation literature and presents findings of a study of school-district expenditures in Chicago, Forth Worth, New York, and Rochester. Horizontal equity results show that in Chicago, New York, and Fort Worth, most coefficients of variation are below 0.15. Rochester's system is slightly less equitable. For…

Discusses implications for school finance data collection and analysis of shifting to schools as key management and policy units. Discusses questions that school-level data can answer concerning resource utilization efficiency, effectiveness, intent, and equity. Outlines conceptual issues (school definition and identification) and database…

Elaborates on distinctions between different formulations of taxpayer equity. First, taxpayer equity is examined from the school finance perspective, then notions of taxpayer equity that are more consistent with public finance views, but that can and have been applied to education, are introduced. (Author/IRT)

Differing methodologies and varied conclusions in research about equity trends in school finance make it impossible to assess national status in school finance reform by using existing studies. Evidence suggests, however, that although horizontal equity has not been achieved, the situation improved from 1940 to 1960 and worsened from 1960 to 1977.…

Uses financial aid awards to calculate net price and uses information on the alternatives considered by the two-year college applicants. Results support the view that prices do affect post-high school decision making, although not uniformly across all groups of students. (Author/IRT)

Systematically analyzes the relationships between the goals and the tools of educational finance plans. Argues that an improved understanding of policies that affect school finance equity can be obtained by viewing equity in terms of a conceptual framework and by describing school finance plans in terms of their structural elements. (Author/IRT)

Ideally, voters' and state legislatures' policy choices should underlie a property tax system that is straightforward, comprehensible, systematic, and reasonably related to policy objectives. Administration should be uniform and fair. New York State's property tax system lacks a uniform valuation standard and "circuit breaker" and has deficiencies…