Thread by @Trish_Crain

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Federal $ pay for special education & Title I programs, which help children with disabilities & children in poverty. In Alabama, that equals around $1 billion (with a "b") each year for the past 10 years--around 15% of the yearly total $ 1/ #aledchat al.com/news/2022/10/s…

Folks talk about dropping federal education dollars because they're tied to this or that, but the reality is that hundreds of thousands of Alabama's children will lose access to necessary services (special education, extra support) they need without those federal dollars.

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As a school finance geek, I believe we need to be clear about what dropping federal education dollars would mean and understand the responsibility that would shift to the states, particularly our state of Alabama. So let's go on a numbers tour....

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Here's the % and total FEDERAL $ spent on Alabama's schoolchildren (not adj for inflation):

FY21 - 18% - $1.4B
FY20 - 14% - $1B
FY19 - 14% - $1B
FY18 - 14% - $1B
FY17 - 14% - $1B
FY16 - 14% - $1B
FY15 - 14% - $1B
FY14 - 14% - $1B
FY13 - 15% - $1B
FY12 - 15% - $1B

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"FY" stands for "fiscal year" and in Alabama, that means Oct. 1 of one year to Sept. 30 of the next. So, for example, FY21 means the period from Oct. 1, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2021. 5/

Here's the % and total STATE $ spent on Alabama's schoolchildren (not adj for inflation):

FY21 -67% - $5.1B
FY20 -68% - $5.1B
FY19 -66% - $4.8B
FY18 -65% - $4.6B
FY17 -66% - $4.6B
FY16 -65% - $4.4B
FY15 -65% - $4.4B
FY14 -65% - $4.3B
FY13 -65% - $4.2B
FY12 -67% - $4.2B

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Here's the % and total LOCAL $ spent on Alabama's schoolchildren (not adj for inflation):

FY21 -15% - $1.2B
FY20 -18% - $1.3B
FY19 -21% - $1.5B
FY18 -21% - $1.5B
FY17 -20% - $1.4B
FY16 -21% - $1.4B
FY15 -20% - $1.4B
FY14 -21% - $1.4B
FY13 -20% - $1.3B
FY12 -18% - $1.2B

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The burden to make up for those lost dollars would not be evenly spread, though.

In Alabama's poorest counties, like Lowndes, Bullock and Coosa, federal dollars have made up 30% or more of total $ spent in some the past 10 years.

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And over the past few years, federal $ regularly fund more than 20% of the total spent in many school districts where the majority of the students are Black children. And where poverty levels are high.

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Federal dollars fill in the gap--to some degree--in areas where there are few local tax dollars to pay for education. BUT local dollars have more flexibility, and I'm certain schools would rather have access to local dollars if given the choice.

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In Alabama's wealthiest districts, like Mountain Brook, Vestavia Hills and Hoover, federal dollars account for 7% or fewer of total $ spent in the past 10 years. So yeah, those 20,000 kids would probably be fine without federal dollars (except those with disabilities).

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Yes, education is a state function that Alabama is supposed to fund, but the truth is that Alabama--we the citizens of Alabama--don't.

We fund about 67% of what is spent right now, 85% if you count local tax support (which isn't spread evenly across districts).

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So unless Alabama is willing to fund the full cost of special education and the additional help Title I dollars provide and help pay for meals for children while they're in school, I don't see how Alabama can say no to federal dollars that go to our schools.

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And even if Alabama's federal tax dollars were returned to state control, there's no indication--historical or otherwise--that Alabama would distribute those dollars equitably based on educational needs.

Because, even now, we aren't doing that.

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If anyone has ideas about how to fill in that gap that would be left by leaving federal $ on the table while ensuring Alabama funds schools for ALL children equitably based on need, I'm genuinely interested. Feel free to reply here or DM me.

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