What Will States Do When the Federal Tap Slows Down?
Benjamin Waddy on August 18, 2010 in Education Tips No Comments »States are more dependent on the federal government for help in funding education than they have been in decades, education finance guru Michael Griffith told a crowd that mostly consisted of state policymakers at a forum at the Education Commission of the States conference in Portland, Ore. Federal spending on K-12 used to be around 8 or 9 percent, he said. Now it’s about 19 percent.
“When you’re talking about driving policy, it’s the golden rule, he who has the gold makes the rules,” Griffith said.
And even a tiny bit of federal funding can make a big difference. For instance, the Investing in Innovation Fund and Race to the Top funding make up less than 3 percent of spending on education.
