Op Ed
Pensions & Benefits
Fringe Benefits Challenge New York School Budgets
July 20, 2015
Public elementary and secondary education in New York State is a $55 billion enterprise. Total spending on education in 2013 averaged $19,818 per student in New York, 85 percent higher than the national average of $10,700, exceeding all other states and the District of Columbia. The problems facing school districts are complex, but one common challenge is the unrelenting rise in fringe benefit costs.