School board revenues and expenditures

School boards across Canada spent 3.5% more in current dollars in 2000 than they did the year before, the largest annual increase since 1991. In contrast, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose at an annual rate of 2.7% in 2000.

The $33.4 billion in school board spending represented 3.1 % of Canada's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2000. This continued a downward trend that started after 1992, when school board spending peaked at 4.3% of GDP.

Between 1993 and 1997, spending per student on a full-time equivalent basis remained relatively stable at about $6,800 in current dollars. In 1998, spending per student started to rise, and by 2000, surpassed $7,200.

Spending per student rose about 6% between 1993 and 2000, about half the rate of the gain in the CPI. Such spending increased in every jurisdiction except Ontario, New Brunswick and the Northwest Territories in 2000.

Note: School board revenues and expenditures are reported on a calendar-year basis. School board expenditures only include those incurred by schools. They can be split between operating and capital expenditures. Operating expenditures include salaries, benefits, supplies and services, fees and contractual services, and other operating costs. Teachers' salaries consistently make up about 60% of school board expenses. School board expenditures exclude, for example, any provincial or territorial department of educations' contribution to its teachers' pension plan as well as any provincial/territorial spending on any other service to school boards. However, these expenditures are taken into account when calculating expenditures per student. About 95% of school board revenues come from provincial or territorial governments and local taxation.

Data from 1900 to 2000 are now available for school board revenues and expenditures.

Available on CANSIM: tables 478-0010 to 478-0012.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 3119.

For general information, contact Client Services, (1-800-307-3382; 613-951-7608; educationstats@statcan.gc.ca). To enquire about the concepts, methods, and data quality of this release, contact Claudio Pagliarello (613-951-1508; claudio.pagliarello@statcan.gc.ca) or Marc Lachance (613-951-2902; marc.lachance@statcan.gc.ca), Centre for Education Statistics.