Michigan School Finance Resources & Official Links

1. Official State Data Portals & Publications

Primary state data repositories published by CEPI and the Michigan Department of Education.

Agency: Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI)
Official state portal for student enrollment counts (Fall and Spring count days) and Registry of Educational Personnel (REP) staffing data.

Agency: Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI)
State repository where Michigan public school districts submit annual audited balance sheets, revenues, and expenditures.

Agency: Michigan Department of Education (MDE)
Annual audited financial report detailing district revenue sources, operating expenditures, and per-pupil calculations across state enrollment size groups.

Agency: Michigan Department of Education (MDE)
Annual financial summaries detailing balance sheets across General Operating (Fund 11) and Capital Projects (Fund 41).

Agency: Michigan Department of Education (MDE)
The official accounting standard prescribing the chart of accounts for Michigan public school districts, including fund, function, and object codes.

Agency: Michigan Department of Treasury
State repository for Form L-4029 tax rate requests, taxable valuations, and municipal bond filings.

Independent fiscal summaries and budget analyses from legislative agencies and research organizations.

Publisher: Michigan Senate Fiscal Agency
Overview of the School Aid Fund (SAF), the Foundation Allowance formula, property tax millages, and categorical funding.

Publisher: Michigan House Fiscal Agency
Nonpartisan budget briefings, Foundation Allowance historical summaries, and retirement system (MPSERS) reports.

Publisher: Citizens Research Council of Michigan
Independent public policy research examining Michigan school funding mechanisms and Proposal A history.

Publisher: School Finance Research Collaborative
Nonpartisan coalition of Michigan education, business, and civic leaders providing comprehensive "costing-out" adequacy studies to determine true per-pupil funding requirements across student needs (special education, at-risk/poverty, and English learners).

University and institutional library subject guides supporting advanced education finance scholarship, national databases, and historical studies.

Publisher: University of Michigan-Dearborn (Mardigian Library)
Curated subject guide supporting graduate studies in Michigan school finance, including academic journal directories, national finance portals, and historical adequacy studies (e.g., the 2016 Michigan Education Finance Study).

Publisher: Edunomics Lab at Georgetown University
National Education Resource Database on Schools tracking school-building-level expenditure data reported under federal ESSA guidelines across Michigan and the United States.

State laws governing public school finance, fund restrictions, and budgeting.

MCL 380.1212 — Building & Site Sinking Funds: Authorizes voter-approved sinking fund millages and prohibits their use for operating expenses or salaries.
MCL 380.1351a — School District Bonds: Governs voter-approved capital bonds and requires proceeds to remain in segregated capital project funds (Fund 41).
MCL 380.1219 — Early Warning Financial Oversight: Establishes state treasury monitoring for districts with General Fund balances below 5.0%.
MCL 380.1220 — Deficit Elimination Plans: Prohibits operating under a deficit budget and mandates state-approved Deficit Elimination Plans.
MCL 388.1606 — Pupil Membership Blend Formula: Codifies the statutory 90/10 blend formula (90% Fall count + 10% preceding Spring count).
MCL 388.1617b — State Aid Payment Schedule: Distributes state aid in 11 monthly installments from October through August (no payment in September).
MCL 38.1341 — MPSERS Retirement System: Mandates employer contributions to the Michigan Public School Employees' Retirement System.
MCL 388.1747c — Section 147c MPSERS Equalization: State aid appropriation equalizing retirement liabilities above the statutory employer cap.
MCL 141.421 et seq. — Uniform Budgeting and Accounting Act: Sets mandatory budget adoption deadlines (June 30) and appropriations limits for local school boards.