Track Every Dollar
Iowa: every school dollar
Where Iowa'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$8.8 billion
- Spent per student, day to day$14,369U.S.: $17,619
- Students507,866334 school systems
- Lottery money to educationLottery money goes to other purposes
Where the money comes from
$8.8 billion in the 2023-24 school year. Select federal, state or local to see every line.
Federal $810 million9.2%
Inside the federal total: $167 million of pandemic relief (ESSER and related funds), which ended in 2024.
State $4.5 billion50.9%
Local $3.5 billion39.9%
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
$9.0 billion spent. Select support services for every line.
Inside these totals: $4.5 billion in salaries and wages, $1.5 billion in employee benefits. Long-term debt at year end: $5.5 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 Iowa in fiscal year 2025: $719 million. 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 Iowa'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 | Iowa | Share of the national total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pell Grants | College grants to students with financial need | $278 million | 0.7% |
| School lunch | National School Lunch Program (Department of Agriculture) | $187 million | 0.7% |
| Special education (IDEA) | Grants to states for students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21 | $146 million | 1.0% |
| Title I | Grants to schools with many students from low-income families | $112 million | 0.6% |
| Head Start | Early childhood programs (Department of Health and Human Services) | $90.7 million | 0.8% |
| Title II, teachers | Supporting effective instruction: teacher and principal training | $16.3 million | 0.8% |
| Career and technical education | Perkins basic grants to states | $14.5 million | 1.0% |
| Federal Work-Study | Part-time jobs for college students with need | $11.1 million | 1.0% |
| After school (21st Century) | 21st Century Community Learning Centers | $8.3 million | 0.6% |
| College opportunity grants (SEOG) | Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants | $8.2 million | 0.9% |
| Title IV-A | Student support and academic enrichment grants | $8.0 million | 0.6% |
| English learners (Title III) | English language acquisition grants | $5.2 million | 0.6% |
| Special education, preschool | Preschool grants for children with disabilities, ages 3 to 5 | $4.4 million | 1.1% |
| Impact Aid | Payments to districts with federal land or military families | $382,621 | 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 Iowa spending the education lottery money?
Iowa law sends $2.5 million a year to the veterans trust fund, $100,000 each to the public safety and department of corrections survivor benefits funds, and the rest of lottery revenue after prizes and expenses to the state general fund; no share is earmarked for education.
What the law says
"Two million five hundred thousand dollars in lottery revenues shall be transferred each fiscal year to the veterans trust fund established pursuant to section 35A.13 prior to deposit of the lottery revenues in the general fund pursuant to section 99G.40."
Iowa Code 99G.39 legis.iowa.gov
What auditors found
"These tickets were gifted to Iowa Lottery upper management/marketing employees and their spouses."
Still being verified: prizes, running the lottery, to education.
Every school system in Iowa
334 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 Iowa 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: Iowa Lottery Statement of Revenues, Expenses and Changes in Net Position, Quarter Ending June 30, 2025 (FINAL, REVISED), Iowa Lottery (filed with the Iowa Legislature). legis.iowa.gov
- Lottery: Iowa Code 2025, Section 99G.39, Iowa Legislature. legis.iowa.gov
- Lottery: Report on the Iowa Lottery Authority for the year ended June 30, 2023, Iowa Auditor of State, 2024-03-08. auditor.iowa.gov
- Checked November 2, 2026. How we track it · Report an error
Take it with you
Track Every Dollar
Every school dollar in Iowa
- Public school money, 2023-24$8.8 billion
- Spent per student$14,369
- Lottery money to education, FY2025Lottery money goes to other purposes
democratic-republican-party.com/track-every-dollar/iowa/