Public Schools

BARRIERS TO ENTRY
High barriers to entry mean that new companies struggle to enter an industry, while low barriers mean it is easy for new companies to enter an industry.

CAPITAL INTENSITY
Compares the amount of money spent on capital (plant, machinery and equipment) with that spent on labor.
IBISWorld uses the ratio of depreciation to wages as a proxy for capital intensity. High capital intensity is more than $ 0.333 of capital to $ 1 of labor; medium is $ 0.125 to $ 0.333 of capital to $ 1 of labor; low is less than $ 0.125 of capital for every $ 1 of labor.

CONSTANT PRICES
The dollar figures in the Key Statistics table, including forecasts, are adjusted for inflation using the current year (i.e. year published) as the base year. This removes the impact of changes in the purchasing power of the dollar, leaving only the "real" growth or decline in industry metrics. The inflation adjustments in IBISWorld’s reports are made using the US Bureau of Economic Analysis’ implicit GDP price deflator.

DOMESTIC DEMAND
Spending on industry goods and services within the United States, regardless of their country of origin. It is derived by adding imports to industry revenue, and then subtracting exports.

CHARTER SCHOOL
An independent public school designed by educators, parents, community leaders, educational entrepreneurs and others that want to provide quality education tailored to students' needs.

MAGNET SCHOOL
A school that focuses on a particular discipline, such as science, mathematics, the arts or computer science, and designed to recruit students from other parts of the school district.

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND (NCLB)
Legislation signed into law by President Bush in 2002 that sets performance guidelines for all students and
stipulates what must be included in accountability reports to parents.

SCHOOL DISTRICT
Local governments with powers similar to that of a town or a county, including taxation and eminent domain.

Public schools receive funding from state and local spending, which accounts for more than half of total government expenditure. Since state and local governments rely heavily on tax collections, rising per capita disposable income over the past five years has lifted their receipts significantly. Favorable economic conditions prior to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic contributed to the growth in per capita disposable income, which is estimated to rise at an annualized rate of 2.2% over the five years to 2022. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate had fallen prior to the pandemic, but subsequently spiked upon the onset of the pandemic. Despite rising income levels over the five years to 2022, the spike in unemployment likely reduced the total tax revenue that can be allocated toward public education, contributing to the slower industry revenue growth for the year. In 2022, however, the unemployment rate is expected to return near pre-pandemic levels, supporting recent revenue growth. Conversely, the prolonged federal budget deficit has placed negative pressure on public school operators, limiting their prospects to expand beyond current operations.