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GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE ON EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA


This release contains statistics on expenditure on education by the general government sector for the period 2004–05 to 2013–14. These data are presented on an accrual accounting basis and are taken from the system of Government Finance Statistics (GFS).

Government expenditure on education refers to expenditure on all levels of education, such as pre-school, primary, secondary, university, and technical and further education (TAFE), by the general government sector. It excludes expenditure on courses provided by non-educational institutions, such as the vocational training programs of private businesses.

The summary tables below present government operating expenses on education by level of government, by purpose (i.e. by type of education), and by economic transaction (i.e. by type of expenditure) for the period 2008–09 to 2013–14.

Operating expenditure on education by all levels of general government increased by $1,891m (2%), from $79,484m in 2012–13 to $81,375m in 2013–14. Total expenditure on education by the Commonwealth Government was $30,049m, with expenditure by the state and local governments totalling $54,481m. Intra-sector transfers were $26,618m.

Of the total operating expenditure on education in 2013–14, $41,763m (51%) was spent on primary and secondary education and $29,185m (36%) on tertiary education (universities and TAFEs). Employee expenses of $41,731m accounted for 51% of total educational expenses with the remaining 49% being on non-employee expenses ($18,637m), depreciation ($3,661m), and transfer expenses ($17,346m).

GOVERNMENT OPERATING EXPENSES ON EDUCATION, By Level of Government
	2008–09	2009–10	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14
	$m	$m	$m	$m	$m	$m
Commonwealth Government	21 905	35 709	33 794	28 728	29 334	30 049
State and local governments	43 322	49 117	49 958	51 017	52 673	54 481
Multi-jurisdictional (a)	17 748	18 515	19 976	21 302	22 941	23 462
Less: Intra-sector transfers	20 590	31 854	28 052	25 187	25 464	26 618
All levels of government	62 385	71 486	75 677	75 859	79 484	81 375
(a) The multi-jurisdictional sector contains units where jurisdiction is shared between two or more governments, or the classification of a unit to a jurisdiction is otherwise unclear. For education the only type of units falling into this category are public universities.

GOVERNMENT OPERATING EXPENSES ON EDUCATION, By Purpose, All Levels of Government
	2008–09	2009–10	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14
	$m	$m	$m	$m	$m	$m
Primary and secondary education	33 105	39 101	40 166	38 736	40 625	41 763
Tertiary education	23 042	24 215	26 195	27 447	29 016	29 185
Pre-school & education not definable by level	2 983	3 089	3 325	4 216	4 452	4 784
Transportation of students	1 326	1 352	1 381	1 401	1 354	1 547
Education n.e.c.	1 930	3 729	4 610	4 060	4 036	4 097
Total by purpose	62 385	71 486	75 677	75 859	79 484	81 375

GOVERNMENT OPERATING EXPENSES ON EDUCATION, By Economic Transaction, All Levels of Government
	2008–09	2009–10	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14
	$m	$m	$m	$m	$m	$m
Employee expenses	32 934	35 050	37 233	39 131	40 987	41 731
Non-employee expenses	14 810	15 710	16 199	17 442	18 131	18 637
Depreciation of fixed assets	2 442	2 657	2 892	3 233	3 523	3 661
Current transfer expenses	11 682	15 673	17 098	15 695	16 396	16 868
Capital transfer expenses	518	2 396	2 255	359	447	478
Total by economic transactions	62 385	71 486	75 677	75 859	79 484	81 375