School Benchmark 11.16.09

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Lise Bang-Jensen Monday, November 16, 2009 (518) 434-3100 NEW YORKERS CAN COMPARE SCHOOL SPENDING ONLINE The often opaque world of school finances has become more transparent with a new tool that allows New Yorkers to analyze how their school districts spend money and to compare them to nearly 700 other districts around the state. Benchmarking New York--developed by the Empire Center for New York State Policy and The Business Council’s Public Policy Institute--is a searchable database of school district spending (excluding only New York City) during the 2007-08 school year. The tool can be found at www.SeeThroughNY.net, the Empire Center’s transparency web site where comparable Benchmarking data for local governments was posted in April. Highlights of the data: • School districts spent an average of $10,692 per pupil on instruction, which includes teacher salaries, supplies and special education, but excludes employee benefits, transportation, capital construction and other expenditures. Lancaster CSD in Erie County spent $5,700 per pupil on instruction, the lowest in the state. The highest spender was Wainscott CSD, a Suffolk County district with 17 students, which spent $97,346 on instruction per pupil. • Health insurance for teachers, staff and retired employees cost an average of $2,194 per pupil. Ranking #1 ...