Nearly two-thirds of districts will receive less aid due to flat
state funding, antiquated funding formula
MADISON — The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction today published state general school aids that school districts will receive during the current school year. By law, the DPI is required to release certified aid figures by Oct. 15 annually. This certification replaces the aid estimate released on July 1.
The state’s general school aid appropriation for 2026-27 remains at $5.58 billion for the third consecutive year. Prior to this biennium, the last time the general aid appropriation did not increase was 2017-18. General school aids, calculated using prior year student counts and financial data, are the largest form of state support for PK-12 schools in Wisconsin. This funding is distributed among Wisconsin school districts through the equalization aid formula.
The information published today includes certified general aid amounts for each school district, as well as 2026-27 student enrollment numbers for independent charter schools and private schools participating in the Private School Choice Programs (PSCP) and the Special Needs Scholarship Program (SNSP). The PSCP, SNSP, and independent charter school programs are funded based on current year data. Enrollment numbers for these programs are used to determine the dollar amounts to be withheld from school districts’ aid payments to fund the programs.
General school aids
The 2025-2027 state biennial budget kept funding for general school aids for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years flat at $5.58 billion. Almost all general aid is distributed as equalization aid according to a formula designed to help Wisconsin communities provide public education despite local differences in property wealth. The formula incorporates school district expenditures, property values, and resident student counts (called “membership”).
The other, smaller elements of general school aids are integration aid (or “Chapter 220” aid) and special adjustment aid. The latter, also known as “hold harmless” aid, limits year-to-year reductions in a district’s gross general aid to no more than 15 percent. In 2026-27, 90 districts will receive this aid, an increase of two districts from the previous year. However, total aid for 16 districts decreased more than 15 percent year-to-year primarily due to prior year aid adjustments. These adjustments typically stem from shifts in expenditures used to calculate prior year aid.
Aid varies widely by district due to the equalization formula. Of 421 districts, 261 (62 percent) will receive less aid for 2026-27 than in 2025-26, and 151 (35.9 percent) will receive more aid. Aid amounts for each school district can be found on the department’s School Financial Services webpage.
New independent charter schools*, the SNSP, and incoming students participating in the Wisconsin Parental Choice Program and Racine Parental Choice Program** are funded by withholding aid from the districts of participating resident students. This results in a difference between the aid eligibility announced today and actual aid payments to be made this year. Additional data and information, including enrollment figures, is available on the DPI’s website (PSCP data, SNSP data, and independent charter school data). For more information regarding the impacts of these programs, visit the DPI’s Fiscal Impacts webpage. Shown in the table below are the projected 2026-27 reductions to state general school aids based on unaudited 3rd Friday in September count data:
| Program | Impact | Total Amount |
| New Independent Charter Schools | 99 districts | $40.3 million |
| Wisconsin Parental Choice Program | 381 districts | $292.6 million |
| Racine Parental Choice Program | Racine Unified School District | $45.6 million |
| Special Needs Scholarship Program | 221 districts | $60.3 million |
* New independent charter schools are those chartered by an authorizer who received authority to authorize in or after 2015 Act 55 (Waukesha County Executive, College of Menominee Nation, Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe University, Office of Educational Opportunity, any UW Chancellor (other than UW-Milwaukee and UW-Parkside), and any technical college district board (except Milwaukee Area Technical College)).
** Pupils who began attending a private school under the WPCP or RPCP in the 2015-16 school year or after are referred to as “incoming” pupils.
###
