State Pension Contributions and Their Impact on State Budgets

Despite much of the political rhetoric pointing towards insufficient funds allocated to education in the United States, education expenditures have increased dramatically over the last half-century. A 2014 Cato Institute report found that between 1970 and 2010, total inflation-adjusted costs associated with K-12 education increased approximately 190% from just under $57,000 in 1970 to over $164,000 for each graduating student in 2010. These trends continued through 2023 with education expenditures reaching 240% of 1970 levels in real terms. And while these costs have increased dramatically, overall student performance in math, reading and science have remained largely unchanged over this entire period.

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