The number of students who passed Utah's high school basic skills test might be lower than the State Office of Education reports — and that could affect how much money lawmakers give to help students who are falling behind.

State education chiefs in May told the state school board and lawmakers that 97 percent of incoming seniors so far have passed the reading part of the Utah Basic Skills Competency Test, which also examines math and writing skills of future high school graduates. They also said 83 percent have cleared the hurdle in math, and 90 percent passed writing.

But a Deseret Morning News examination calls the numbers into question. The newspaper found the number of students known to have failed the exam could drop the pass rates to 90.5 percent in reading, 74 percent in math and 82.5 percent in writing.

Those numbers were calculated using data provided by the State Office of Education at the newspaper's request. They don't count students who have yet to take the exam — the state office says it doesn't have those numbers — which could take the pass rates down 3 to 5 percentage points more, if state totals were to mirror trends in its five largest school districts.

The State Office of Education stands by its official report, which it says is intended as an estimate. Testing officials there say it's impractical to gather data on the basic skills test without a universal student identification to accurately track repeat test takers, who may have changed schools, dropped out or moved out of state, or even used different names or other information from one test to the next. Those IDs will come in the fall.

"It is impossible to provide completely accurate information for this combination of nine tests (three tests for each of three administrations) administered over a two-year period," according to a prepared statement released by the State Office of Education and attributed to evaluation and assessment director Judy Park.

This information matters.

It matters to people making decisions about education. The governor's office has a group discussing achievement gaps between whites and minorities, the haves and have-nots. But basic skills test data offers conflicting information.

It matters to high schools, which soon will be held accountable for basic skills test scores under U-PASS, which the state wants to use to meet requirements of No Child Left Behind — a federal law that's controversial in the Beehive State.

And it ultimately matters to parents and children, as the number of students failing could influence how much money the Legislature gives to help them.

"I guess it would be important for the state to have accurate data in those circumstances. If there are kids who aren't accounted for, does that create an impression we don't need as much focus on remediation, and if the percentages are higher, is that (going to affect) a discussion at the legislative level?" asked Tim McConnell, who oversees testing in Park City School District.