School finance reforms in the last five decades have led to an increase in state aid to school districts, expanding states’ role in public K-12 education financing. Still, more than two-fifths of total spending for K-12 education in the country is financed from local sources. The national average conceals significant variations in local financing, with reliance on local resources ranging from one to more than 90 percent across states. There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that resources impact educational outcomes. Thus, beyond state aid, it is essential to understand how the varying capacities of districts to generate and allocate resources affect student achievement.

Specifically, how do differing levels of fiscal autonomy in public K-12 school districts in the fifty states affect student outcomes?At its basic,fiscal autonomy refers to the degree of independence and control that school districts have over decision making related to public finances. Applying insights from fiscal federalism, organizational economics, and institutional theory, the project employs a theory-based approach to develop multi-dimensional fiscal autonomy indices, which are measured based on a systematic collection and coding of legal documents and surveys of state government officials.