Only four states (California, Massachusetts, New York, Washington) dedicate state funding specifically to students experiencing homelessness¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2023 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · recheck by 2028: baselines and conditions change

Subclaims¶

q2 i? A review of all 50 state funding formulas found only California ($183.3 million one-time), Massachusetts ($23 million transportation), New York ($22.6 million), and Washington ($3.2 million) provide dedicated state funding. → Espinoza 2023

Evidence¶

Espinoza 2023¶

Espinoza, D., Griffith, M., Burns, D., & Shields, P. M. (2023). Federal and state resources for students experiencing homelessness. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/546.264

q2 · i? · review · r2

The report's own review of all 50 state K–12 education funding formulas and budgets (Table 3); annual state funding ranges from $87 per identified student in Washington to approximately $1,015 in Massachusetts. A 2019 Washington audit found districts spent $28.6 million on essentials but received only $2.5 million.

"Only four states have specific funding sources intended for students experiencing homelessness: California, Massachusetts, New York, and Washington."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• McKinney-Vento funding per identified student rose only from $71 to $79 between 2010 and 2020 despite a 39% increase in identified students — related
• Fewer than 24% of LEAs receive McKinney-Vento grants, and over one third of students experiencing homelessness attend districts receiving none — related
• Federal McKinney-Vento funding is low and not allocated by homeless-student counts: $106.5 million in 2020–21, under $82 per identified student, reaching only a fraction of districts — related
• In 2023–24, 44 states provided unique funding for at-risk students, with all 44 classifying low-income students as at-risk and 22 providing concentration-based funding — related