Track Every Dollar

North Dakota: every school dollar

Where North Dakota'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$2.5 billion
Spent per student, day to day$17,102U.S.: $17,619
Students119,016192 school systems
Lottery money to educationLottery money goes to other purposes

Where the money comes from

$2.5 billion in the 2023-24 school year. Select federal, state or local to see every line.

Federal 15%State 46%Local 38%

Federal $384 million15.4%

All other federal money$180 million46.9%
Title I: schools with many low-income families$53.9 million14.0%
Impact Aid$47.2 million12.3%
Special education (IDEA)$42.9 million11.2%
School meals$42.3 million11.0%
Teacher and principal training (Title II)$7.1 million1.9%
After-school programs (21st Century)$4.0 million1.0%
Student support and enrichment (Title IV-A)$3.3 million0.9%
Indian, Native Hawaiian and Alaska Native education$2.1 million0.6%
English learners (Title III)$825,0000.2%
Career and technical education$13,000under 0.1%

State $1.2 billion46.2%

General formula aid$1.1 billion92.8%
Special education$27.2 million2.4%
Transportation$25.1 million2.2%
All other state money$16.1 million1.4%
Career and technical education$12.5 million1.1%
School meals$2.0 million0.2%

Local $956 million38.4%

Property taxes$629 million65.8%
Interest, rents, donations and other$174 million18.2%
Tuition, fees, meals and other charges$92.4 million9.7%
From cities and counties$60.6 million6.3%

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

$2.5 billion spent. Select support services for every line.

Teaching (instruction)$1.2 billion47.7%
Support services Details$668 million26.5%
- Running and maintaining buildings$168 million25.2%
- School administration: principals' offices$102 million15.3%
- Student support: attendance, guidance, health and psychological services$91.8 million13.7%
- Student transportation$81.4 million12.2%
- District administration: the board and superintendent's office$81.0 million12.1%
- Business office and central services$72.0 million10.8%
- Teacher support: curriculum, training, libraries$71.9 million10.8%
Buildings and equipment Details$400 million15.9%
Of this, construction: $299 million.
Food service and other$163 million6.5%
Interest on debt$39.1 million1.6%
Community services and adult education$19.0 million0.8%
Payments to state and local governments$28.2 million1.1%

Inside these totals: $1.2 billion in salaries and wages, $447 million in employee benefits. Long-term debt at year end: $925 million.

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

North Dakota: day-to-day spending per student, by fiscal year.

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 North Dakota in fiscal year 2025: $308 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 North Dakota'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.

Federal education programs in North Dakota, fiscal year 2025
Program	What it is	North Dakota	Share of the national total
Pell Grants	College grants to students with financial need	$65.5 million	0.2%
Title I	Grants to schools with many students from low-income families	$53.8 million	0.3%
School lunch	National School Lunch Program (Department of Agriculture)	$52.1 million	0.2%
Special education (IDEA)	Grants to states for students with disabilities, ages 3 to 21	$46.7 million	0.3%
Head Start	Early childhood programs (Department of Health and Human Services)	$40.2 million	0.3%
Impact Aid	Payments to districts with federal land or military families	$35.8 million	2.3%
Title II, teachers	Supporting effective instruction: teacher and principal training	$10.8 million	0.5%
Title IV-A	Student support and academic enrichment grants	$8.7 million	0.6%
After school (21st Century)	21st Century Community Learning Centers	$7.2 million	0.5%
Career and technical education	Perkins basic grants to states	$5.9 million	0.4%
Federal Work-Study	Part-time jobs for college students with need	$3.0 million	0.3%
College opportunity grants (SEOG)	Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants	$2.7 million	0.3%
Special education, preschool	Preschool grants for children with disabilities, ages 3 to 5	$901,173	0.2%
English learners (Title III)	English language acquisition grants	$639,569	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 North Dakota spending the education lottery money?

North Dakota law sends $80,000 a quarter to the gambling disorder prevention and treatment fund, $250,000 a quarter to the multijurisdictional drug task force grant fund, and the balance of net proceeds to the state general fund; no share is earmarked for education.

What the law says

"d. The balance of the net proceeds, less holdback of any reserve funds the director may need for continuing operations, must be transferred to the state treasurer on at least an annual basis for deposit in the state general fund."

N.D.C.C. 53-12.1-09(4) ndlegis.gov

Tickets sold$26.9 million p. 8
Prizes 53%$14.1 million p. 8
Retailers 4%$1.2 million p. 13
Running the lottery 21%$5.7 million p. 8
Sent to the state for its programs 24%$6.3 million p. 13
Of what was sent to the state, to educationUnknown

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.

State General Fund$5.0 million p. 13
Multijurisdictional Drug Task Force Fund$1.0 million p. 13
Compulsive Gambling Treatment Fund$320,000 p. 13

What auditors found

"The results of our tests disclosed no instances of noncompliance or other matters that are required to be reported under Government Auditing Standards."

North Dakota State Auditor, North Dakota Lottery Audit Report for the years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, 2025-11-04. lottery.nd.gov

Still being verified: to education.

Every school system in North Dakota

192 school systems reported to the Census Bureau for 2023-24. See each one's money in and money out.

See all 192 school systems

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 North Dakota 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: North Dakota Lottery financial statements and Independent Auditor's Report, years ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, North Dakota State Auditor (posted by North Dakota Lottery), 2025-11-04. lottery.nd.gov
Lottery: North Dakota Century Code chapter 53-12.1, Lottery, North Dakota Legislative Branch. ndlegis.gov
Checked November 2, 2026. How we track it · Report an error