Current Grade
Trend - Steady
Funding needed to raise to a "B" Grade
In 2021, the ASCE Report Card gave the average national condition of school facilities a D+, the same grade they earned in 2017. ASCE estimates that $38 billion per year in new investments are needed to raise their grade to B.
The White House proposes $9.7 billion per year in new school facility spending, which is 26% of the funding ASCE estimates is needed. Both CSC and PSC join Senate Republicans in not including new funding for school facilities in their proposal.
President Biden argues that the economy clearly functions better with a well-educated population. Consequently, the White House argues, adequate physical facilities for public education are rightfully considered part of the nation’s infrastructure. We owe it to the nation and our students, the Biden Administration argues, to educate our children in safe and adequate facilities and create American jobs while doing it.
Opponents acknowledge that public education contributes to a productive and efficient economy. Still, they suggest that the contributions public school facilities make to economic productivity is far more indirect, than, for example, roads, rails, and broadband and should not be considered as part of an infrastructure package.
In a 2020 General Accountability Office (GAO) survey, districts and states reported that 54% of school districts “need to update or replace multiple building systems or features in their schools.” Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems were the most common systems needing attention. About 41% of districts reported that the HVAC systems in at least half of their schools needed to be updated or replaced.