Utah’s education financing has long been considered an anomaly. A November 1999 Utah Foundation research report, entitled “Utah’s Education Paradox,” included two statistics that were seemingly at odds with each other. It reported that:

• Utah spent more of its money on public education than most other states. In terms of spending as a percentage of all state and local government spending, it ranked 3rd in the nation, while in terms of spending as a percentage of personal income, it ranked 2nd.
• Utah spent less money on each child’s education than any other state in the nation. Also, Utah’s average class size has been larger than any other state’s.

Utah’s Education Paradox is that even though Utah spends a higher percentage of its budget on education than most other states, it still spends less per student.

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