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Indiana: every school dollar
Where Indiana'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$17.0 billion
- Spent per student, day to day$13,622U.S.: $17,619
- Students978,458315 school systems
- Lottery money to education$30.0 millionFY2025
Where the money comes from
$17.0 billion in the 2023-24 school year. Select federal, state or local to see every line.
Federal $1.9 billion11.4%
Inside the federal total: $659 million of pandemic relief (ESSER and related funds), which ended in 2024.
State $9.5 billion55.9%
Local $5.6 billion32.7%
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
$16.8 billion spent. Select support services for every line.
Inside these totals: $7.2 billion in salaries and wages, $2.4 billion in employee benefits. Long-term debt at year end: $13.6 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 Indiana in fiscal year 2025: $1.7 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 Indiana'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 | Indiana | Share of the national total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pell Grants | College grants to students with financial need | $734 million | 1.8% |
| School lunch | National School Lunch Program (Department of Agriculture) | $446 million | 1.6% |
| Special education (IDEA) | Grants to states for students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21 | $315 million | 2.2% |
| Title I | Grants to schools with many students from low-income families | $281 million | 1.5% |
| Head Start | Early childhood programs (Department of Health and Human Services) | $175 million | 1.5% |
| Title II, teachers | Supporting effective instruction: teacher and principal training | $41.2 million | 1.9% |
| Career and technical education | Perkins basic grants to states | $32.4 million | 2.3% |
| Title IV-A | Student support and academic enrichment grants | $21.0 million | 1.5% |
| Federal Work-Study | Part-time jobs for college students with need | $19.8 million | 1.7% |
| After school (21st Century) | 21st Century Community Learning Centers | $19.6 million | 1.5% |
| College opportunity grants (SEOG) | Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants | $18.6 million | 2.1% |
| English learners (Title III) | English language acquisition grants | $11.7 million | 1.3% |
| Special education, preschool | Preschool grants for children with disabilities, ages 3 to 5 | $9.6 million | 2.4% |
| Impact Aid | Payments to districts with federal land or military families | $702,871 | under 0.1% |
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 Indiana spending the education lottery money?
Indiana distributes Hoosier Lottery surplus as $30 million a year to the Teachers' Retirement Fund, $30 million a year to police and firefighter pensions, and the remainder to the Lottery Surplus Fund, part of which supplements the Motor Vehicle Excise Tax Replacement Fund; the education-related recipient is the teachers' pension fund. The lottery began in 1989.
What the law says
The promise: $30 million a year to the Teachers' Retirement Fund; no share of lottery surplus is set for school or college operating programs.
"Per IC 4-30-16, the surplus revenue in the Lottery Commission's Administration Trust Fund is to distributed in the following manner: 1. $30 million annually to Public Employees Retirement Fund (PERF) 2. $30 million annually to the Teacher's Retirement Fund (TRF)"
IC 4-30-16 (as summarized by the Indiana State Budget Agency) faqs.in.gov
- Tickets sold$1.6 billion p. 67
- PrizesUnknown
- RetailersUnknown
- Running the lotteryUnknown
- Sent to the state for its programs 21%$341 million p. 2
- Of what was sent to the state, to education$30.0 million p. 189
Of every dollar of Indiana lottery tickets sold in FY2025, 2 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.
- Teachers' Retirement Fund (supplemental reserve account for postretirement benefits)$30.0 million p. 189
Since 1989: $1.0 billion p. 14 to education in total.
Still being verified: prizes, retailers, running the lottery.
Every school system in Indiana
315 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 Indiana 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: Hoosier Lottery Annual Report Fiscal Year 2025, Hoosier Lottery (State Lottery Commission of Indiana). hoosierlottery.com
- Lottery: Hoosier Lottery Corporate Social Responsibility Annual Report Fiscal Year 2025, Hoosier Lottery. hoosierlottery.com
- Lottery: State of Indiana Fiscal 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, Indiana State Comptroller. secure.in.gov
- Lottery: How is the revenue from the Hoosier Lottery distributed?, IN.gov (Indiana State Budget Agency FAQ), 2023-02-15. faqs.in.gov
- Checked November 2, 2026. How we track it · Report an error
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Track Every Dollar
How is Indiana spending the education lottery money?
- Public school money, 2023-24$17.0 billion
- Spent per student$13,622
- Lottery money to education, FY2025$30.0 million
- Of each lottery dollar sold2 cents to education
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