According to a new Government Accountability Office report, districts nationwide spent about $60 billion in federal COVID-19-related emergency relief funds by the end of the 2021-2022 school year.
The federal watchdog agency says its report is based on data from the Department of Education because it was asked to review how school districts were using the nearly $190 billion in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds provided by Congress.
The report focuses on highlighting how districts spent the funds and why. The GAO says it analyzed spending data for the 2020-21 and the 2021-22 school years and visited 17 districts across six large states that, together, received 40% of all the ESSER funds.
