Public K-12 school funding in the U.S. grew 35.8% between 2002 and 2023, with the average annual per-student cost increasing from $14,969 to $20,322 during that time frame after adjusting for inflation, according to Reason Foundation’s K-12 Spending Spotlight 2025.
Nationally, public schools received a collective $946.5 billion in local, state and federal funding in 2023. New York had the highest per-student budget at $36,976, followed by New Jersey at $30,267 per student. Idaho spent the least at $11,937.
Much of the increases in K-12 spending between 2020 and 2023 can be attributed to the influx of federal COVID-19 emergency funds to help schools recover from pandemic hardships. The one-time, congressionally approved funds pumped nearly $190 billion into K-12 schools, which equaled to about $1,181 per student.
While all 50 states increased their K-12 funding from 2002 to 2023, inflation-adjusted average teacher salaries dropped by 6.1% between 2002 and 2022, falling from $75,152 to $70,548, according to the analysis by the Reason Foundation, a libertarian public policy research organization.
In fact, the average teacher’s salary decreased by more than 5% in 38 states between 2020 and 2022. The states with the largest declines in average teacher salaries include North Carolina (−9.6%), New Mexico (−8.8%) and South Carolina (−8.7%).
Minnesota was the only state to have a positive percentage K-12 teacher salary growth (6.5%) during that timeframe.
The analysis predicts K-12 funding challenges ahead, including declining public school enrollment, an imbalance of staffing levels compared to enrollment, mounting pension costs and debt, stagnant teacher salaries, and pressures to increase academic outcomes.
Money alone won't solve these challenges, said Reason Foundation, which urges lawmakers to find policy solutions that address the root causes for fiscal struggles and maximize the use of existing K-12 funding.
Here are more figures provided by the Reason Foundation:
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