Per-pupil spending varies widely between states in the U.S., as well as between the richest and poorest school districts, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2013, education spending averaged $10,700 per pupil -- with Utah spending the least ($6,555) and New York spending the most ($19,818).

Voters in Colorado will decide today whether to approve a $1-billion income-tax increase that would change how public education is funded in the state. Among other things, the overhaul would increase per-pupil spending, funnel more money to school districts with higher enrollment of at-risk students, provide $100 million for an innovation fund and provide equal funding to charter schools.

Data released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Tuesday show that, in fiscal 2011, the U.S. spent on average $10,560 per student -- down 0.4% since 2010. It is the first recorded drop in per-pupil spending since the data was first collected in 1977, the agency reported, though other drops can be seen if inflation is taken into consideration. Officials say decreased spending likely will affect students' education.

According to the Public Education Finances report recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2010 local funding for public education surpassed state funding by $3 billion. That shift in funding distribution could have political consequences if local districts begin to demand a voice in state-level policy decisions as well, education policy writer Andrew Ujifusa writes in this blog post. The report also found that U.S. per-pupil spending more than doubled between 1992 and 2010.

A just-released U.S. Census report on per-pupil school funding in the 2003-04 school year places Utah, with its $5,008 per-pupil funding, dead last in a nation where the national average was $8,280. Observers note the state ranks near the U.S. mean, however, when education spending as a portion of personal income is considered.