Track Every Dollar
Arizona: every school dollar
Where Arizona's public school money comes from, where it goes, what Washington sends, and how the state spends its lottery money. Select any line for more.
- Public school money, 2023-24$13.9 billion
- Spent per student, day to day$12,003U.S.: $17,619
- Students884,915235 school systems
- Lottery money to education$42.3 millionFY2025
Where the money comes from
$13.9 billion in the 2023-24 school year. Select federal, state or local to see every line.
Federal $2.5 billion18.1%
State $6.6 billion47.3%
Local $4.8 billion34.7%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, Public Elementary-Secondary Education Finances: Fiscal Year 2024. School year 2023-24. census.gov the data file
Where it goes
$13.1 billion spent. Select support services for every line.
Inside these totals: $6.3 billion in salaries and wages, $2.0 billion in employee benefits. Long-term debt at year end: $5.9 billion.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, Public Elementary-Secondary Education Finances: Fiscal Year 2024. School year 2023-24. census.gov the data file
Spending per student over time
Not adjusted for inflation. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 20. summary tables
What Washington committed
Department of Education money committed for use in Arizona in fiscal year 2025: $2.9 billion. The programs below include money from Agriculture (school meals) and Health and Human Services (Head Start), and college aid (Pell).
Why this differs from the federal line above: that line is what Arizona's schools received in the 2023-24 school year (Census). This one is what Washington committed in a later federal year, including college aid, which schools never receive.
| Program | What it is | Arizona | Share of the national total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pell Grants | College grants to students with financial need | $1.8 billion | 4.5% |
| School lunch | National School Lunch Program (Department of Agriculture) | $608 million | 2.2% |
| Title I | Grants to schools with many students from low-income families | $335 million | 1.8% |
| Head Start | Early childhood programs (Department of Health and Human Services) | $299 million | 2.5% |
| Special education (IDEA) | Grants to states for students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21 | $249 million | 1.8% |
| Impact Aid | Payments to districts with federal land or military families | $219 million | 13.9% |
| Title II, teachers | Supporting effective instruction: teacher and principal training | $43.9 million | 2.0% |
| Career and technical education | Perkins basic grants to states | $34.4 million | 2.4% |
| College opportunity grants (SEOG) | Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants | $34.1 million | 3.8% |
| After school (21st Century) | 21st Century Community Learning Centers | $24.6 million | 1.8% |
| Title IV-A | Student support and academic enrichment grants | $23.7 million | 1.7% |
| Federal Work-Study | Part-time jobs for college students with need | $21.5 million | 1.9% |
| English learners (Title III) | English language acquisition grants | $16.5 million | 1.9% |
| Special education, preschool | Preschool grants for children with disabilities, ages 3 to 5 | $5.2 million | 1.3% |
Source: USAspending.gov, U.S. Department of the Treasury. Federal fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025), money committed (obligated) by state where it is used. usaspending.gov
How is Arizona spending the education lottery money?
A.R.S. 5-572 distributes lottery profit in a fixed order to the Heritage Fund, health and welfare programs, homeless shelters, the state general fund, the Arizona Competes Fund and the university capital improvement fund for Arizona Board of Regents bond payments, with the remainder to the state general fund; Powerball proceeds also fund Maricopa County mass transit. The lottery began in 1981.
What the law says
The promise: No fixed share for education. After the Heritage Fund ($10,000,000), health and welfare programs, homeless shelters, at least $99,640,000 to the state general fund and the Arizona Competes Fund ($1,750,000 through FY2028-29), the balance goes to the university capital improvement lease-to-own and bond fund, up to 80 percent of the Arizona Board of Regents' annual lease-to-own and bond payments; money left after that goes to the state general fund.
"The balance in the state lottery fund remaining after deposits into the Arizona competes fund shall be deposited in the university capital improvement lease-to-own and bond fund established by section 15-1682.03, up to a maximum of eighty percent of the total annual payments of lease-to-own and bond agreements entered into by the Arizona board of regents."
A.R.S. 5-572(F) azleg.gov
- Tickets sold$1.4 billion p. 5
- Prizes 70%$977 million p. 5
- Retailers 7%$92.1 million p. 1
- Running the lotteryUnknown
- Sent to the state for its programs 19%$264 million p. 5
- Of what was sent to the state, to education$42.3 million p. 4
Of every dollar of Arizona lottery tickets sold in FY2025, 3 cents reached education.
What it paid for, FY2025
Payments made during the year. They include money earned in earlier years, so they do not add up to the year's total sent to education.
- Maricopa County Mass Transit$11.5 million p. 5
- General Fund, Part 1$84.2 million p. 5
- Heritage$10.0 million p. 5
- Health and Welfare Programs$26.1 million p. 5
- Homeless Shelters$1.0 million p. 5
- General Fund, Part 2$15.5 million p. 5
- Arizona Commerce Authority$1.8 million p. 5
- University Capital Improvement (UCI) Fund: up to 80% of annual debt service on University SPEED bonds$42.3 million p. 4
- Deferred General Fund, Part 3$71.7 million p. 5
Lottery money to education by year
What auditors found
"Finding 1: Lottery should enhance efforts to maximize sales"
Still being verified: running the lottery.
Every school system in Arizona
235 school systems reported to the Census Bureau for 2023-24. See each one's money in and money out.
The record
- School money: Public Elementary-Secondary Education Finances: Fiscal Year 2024, U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances. The district totals for Arizona were added up and checked against the Census state table on seven totals. census.gov
- Federal money: Federal education spending, fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025). Money committed, by the state where it is used. usaspending.gov
- Lottery: FY 2018 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2019 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2020 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2021 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2022 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2023 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2024 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2025 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2026 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: FY 2027 Baseline: Arizona State Lottery Commission, Arizona Joint Legislative Budget Committee. azjlbc.gov
- Lottery: A.R.S. 5-572. Use of monies in state lottery fund; report, Arizona State Legislature. azleg.gov
- Lottery: Arizona State Lottery Commission and Arizona State Lottery, Performance Audit and Sunset Review, Report No. 10-03 (March 2010), Arizona Office of the Auditor General. azauditor.gov
- Checked November 2, 2026. How we track it · Report an error
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Track Every Dollar
How is Arizona spending the education lottery money?
- Public school money, 2023-24$13.9 billion
- Spent per student$12,003
- Lottery money to education, FY2025$42.3 million
- Of each lottery dollar sold3 cents to education
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