5518.0.55.001 - Government Finance Statistics, Education, Australia, 2015-16 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 27/04/2017   
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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 2006-07 to 2015-16. 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 2010-11 to 2015-16.

Operating expenditure on education by all levels of general government increased by $3,286m (3.9%), from $84,571m in 2014-15 to $87,857m in 2015-16. Total expenditure on education by the Commonwealth Government was $32,312m, with expenditure by the state and local governments totalling $58,352m. Intra-sector transfers were $29,485m.

Of the total operating expenditure on education in 2015-16, $45,236m (51.5%) was spent on primary and secondary education and $31,643m (36.0%) on tertiary education (universities and TAFEs). Employee expenses of $45,235m accounted for 51.5% of total educational expenses with the remaining 48.5% being on non-employee expenses ($19,855m), depreciation ($3,988m), and transfer expenses ($18,780m).

Graph Image for PROPORTION OF GOVERNMENT OPERATING EXPENSES ON EDUCATION

Source(s): Government Finance Statistics, Education, Australia





GOVERNMENT OPERATING EXPENSES ON EDUCATION, By Level of Government

2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m

Commonwealth Government
33 794
28 728
29 334
30 049
31 375
32 312
State and local governments
49 958
51 017
52 695
54 507
56 191
58 352
Multi-jurisdictional (a)
19 977
21 302
22 942
23 629
25 609
26 678
Less: Intra-sector transfers
28 052
25 188
25 466
26 644
28 604
29 485
All levels of government
75 677
75 859
79 506
81 540
84 571
87 857

(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

2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m

Primary and secondary education
40 166
38 736
40 645
41 785
43 270
45 236
Tertiary education
26 195
27 446
29 015
29 326
30 626
31 643
Pre-school & education not definable by level
3 325
4 216
4 454
4 786
5 091
5 337
Transportation of students
1 381
1 401
1 354
1 547
1 575
1 535
Education n.e.c.
4 610
4 060
4 036
4 097
4 010
4 106
Total by purpose
75 677
75 859
79 506
81 540
84 571
87 857


GOVERNMENT OPERATING EXPENSES ON EDUCATION, By Economic Transaction, All Levels of Government

2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m

Employee expenses
37 233
39 131
41 009
41 848
43 306
45 235
Non-employee expenses
16 305
17 544
18 131
18 679
19 350
19 855
Depreciation of fixed assets
2 892
3 233
3 523
3 668
3 815
3 988
Current transfer expenses
16 992
15 592
16 395
16 867
17 847
18 501
Capital transfer expenses
2 255
359
447
478
252
279
Total by economic transactions
75 677
75 859
79 506
81 540
84 571
87 857



INQUIRIES

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