Public School Spending per Pupil Since 1970 and by Race for 2021/22. Special Need Student Expenditures.

 Spending per public school student, inflation-adjusted

Public School Expenditure by Race 2021-2022

Growth in Students/Teachers/Administrators

Special Education Expenditures

Approximately 33.6% of the $41 billion federal elementary and secondary education budget for the 2021 fiscal year was spent on special education services.  In the 2019-20 school year, 7.3 million students or 14% of the public-school population, received special education services under IDEA.  The number of students needing special services has increased by nearly one million over the last decade.  

Growth in School Administrators versus Students