Serrano V Priest Summary

Serrano V. Priest is a landmark 1976 California Supreme Court ruling that required more equal funding of school districts regardless of the wealth of the community. Historically, school funding has been obtained by levying taxes on property. With the gross disparity in property values in rich and poor communities, this translated into a gross disparity in the quality of education that the district could afford. To be clear, the case did not actually result in equally funded districts across California. However it did establish important principles that have framed the continuing struggle for education equity in the state. The 1976 decision ruled that the existing system of financing schools is unconstitutional because it violated the equal protection clause in the state constitution.