12.2 Financing State and Local Governments
This program works with the local school board to provide funding as no money is given to parents but parents may choose which school their children attend
Charter schools
This reform does not go as far as vouchers, but it still provides publicly funded alternatives to standard public schools
Charter schools
In recent years more and more states have turned to _____ to pay their expenses, and now billions of dollars are coming from them with states retaining about one-third of the money as proceeds
Lotteries
Two of the following are sources of income for counties, townships, cities, and states
Lotteries and grants
Critics say that this program causes teachers to "teach to the test," and that creativity in the classroom is inhibited
National student testing
This reform advocates that students be given national exams in various subjects to measure their accomplishments by an objective standard
National student testing
This type of taxes is controversial because other types of property, such as stocks, bonds, and bank accounts, generally are not taxed
Property taxes
This type of taxes provides the chief source of income for local governments today and is levied on land, buildings, and personal dwellings
Property taxes
They are the most important source of revenue for states and is placed on various products for which customers pay
Sales tax
Today 45 states have this kind of tax that applies to most goods, although food is usually excluded, and sometimes clothing is exempt
Sales tax
Taxes levied on those that extract natural resources such as coal, oil, timber, and gas from the land are called _____
Severance taxes
Counties, townships, cities, and states collect some of their money from licenses and fees and state-operated businesses, but about half of state revenue comes from _____
Taxes
What are the chances in having the winning ticket in the Powerball Lottery
1 in 292,000,000
Taxes imposed on gasoline, liquor, automobiles, and cigarettes are called _____
Excise taxes
This type of taxes is generally progressive; that is, it is graduated so that the rate goes up with the size of the income
Income taxes
This type of taxes is imposed by all but a handful of states on personal and corporate incomes
Income taxes
Taxes imposed when a person dies and wills property to heirs are called _____
Inheritance and estate taxes
Funding for education comes primarily from federal government and it also gives a great deal of financial and administrative support to schools
False
In Hawaii the state pays about 90% of educational expenses, as compared to New Hampshire, where only about 20% is paid by the local school district
False
Inequalities between affluent and needy areas do not have an effect in the education gap across America
False
Military defense is a budget item for state and local governments
False
Most states get more than a quarter of their income from _____ that often go for building projects, such as roads, bridges, and dams, and for education, health care, and welfare
Federal grants
Because most schools are funded by property taxes, many prosperous communities are able to collect more taxes than are poor communities, where property values are much lower
True
Critics maintain that the unequal situation among communities creates inequities in the quality of schools, resulting in inadequate education for poor children
True
Local and state tax money pays for police protection, education, highway building and maintenance, welfare programs, and hospital and health care
True
Part of the reason as to why state and local governments in the US provide most of the funding for education is that the traditional belief that communities need to take care of their own children
True
Public education is the single largest expenditure for state and local governments across the nation
True
Taxing citizens is one of the concurrent powers of government, which means that the federal, state, and local levels all have the power to tax
True
The single biggest expenditure in all states is education, with the average state and the localities within it spending just less than one-quarter of its budget for public schools
True
Opponents of this program argue that it drains additional funds from communities that most need them and allows parents to use public money to send their children to religious schools
Vouchers
This program provides parents with a set amount of money to pay for their child's education in a public or private school of their choice
Vouchers