The annual national report card says Utah is dead last in per-pupil spending — a fact state education leaders can pretty much predict each year due to the state's unique demographics.

The report also reveals Utah is facing similar challenges as other states with English language learners.

All this is according to the 2009 Quality Counts report released on Tuesday. The report is produced by a nonprofit organization based in Bethesda, Md.

To view the report, go to www.edweek.org/ew/toc/2009/01/08/index.html.

State education officials aren't simply being cynical when they say it's no surprise Utah is last in student spending. The fact that last year Utah placed 49th was simply an anomaly — the state is generally in last place on a continual basis, said Todd Hauber, associate superintendent of business services, State Office of Education.

There is an abundance of school-age children in Utah. The state has the highest birth rate in the nation, according to Census data. "We're not going backwards," Hauber said.

Further, a large portion of Utah is land such as parks and forest that doesn't produce property taxes for the state.

"We have a bigger base to cover with smaller revenue," Hauber said.

Utah spends $5,964 per pupil compared to the national figure of $9,963.

Hauber points out the national number is almost double Utah's. The answer right now is "to be effective as we can with the dollars we have," he said.

The state, however, is doing quite well at equalizing funds instead of having extremely rich and poor districts. Utah is No. 1 in this area, according to the report.

Hauber said Utah school districts are primarily funded with state income tax. "The formula is equitable," he said. "The money goes to where it is needed, not to where it is generated."

All districts don't get the same amount, but "variance is very small," Hauber said.

The Quality Counts report also states the English language learner population is continuing to grow, particularly in southeast and Midwest states.

Nationally, growth in English language learners was 57 percent between 1995 and 2005. This was an increase from 3.2 million to 5.1 million ELL students in a decade, according to the report.

The national achievement gap between English learners and public school students is significant on both national and state-developed tests, the report states.

Charlene Lui, director of Educational Equity for Granite School District, said, however, when the ELL students do become proficient in English, many actually start to do better academically than their English-speaking classmates. Lui credits this to the specialized attention the students receive in the ELL program.

"They acquire some great skills," she said.

E-mail: astewart@desnews.com