2016 Volume 42 Pages 164-180
The purpose of this paper is to clarify the drafting process of school finance laws during the education reform in the post-war era, through analyzing on 1) the proceedings of the Japan Education Reform Council (JERC), especially that of the 18th Ad Hoc Committee, and on 2) the Reports of Conference written by Walter E. Morgan who was Education Finance Officer at the Civil Information and Education Section.
The 18th Ad Hoc Committee was established by the JERC to discuss educational finance when the Shoup Report was submitted to the Japanese government. However, most studies reviewed the 18th committee without analyzing its proceedings. In addition, Morgan has not been seen as a key person for educational finance in the post-war reform. The lack of these points of view was caused by the fact that researchers place weight on decentralization of school finance on the basis of the Shoup Report, while they criticized the Ministry of Education, which aimed to construct a centralized system.
The findings of this study are as follows; first, school finance laws were drafted to secure“ the right to receive an equal education” described in the Constitution of Japan. Though the General Equalization Grant Law demanded a decentralization of the finance system, the members of the JERC put much value on the national minimum standard on the basis of a centralized finance system for education.
Secondly, Morgan focused on article 26 of the Constitution of Japan. He explained the need for free and compulsory education for all children and this was an obligation imposed on the government under the Constitution.
Third, school finance laws, especially the Law Concerning the Security of the Standard Compulsory Education Expense, had never proceeded to the Diet not because GHQ and GS were opposed to the laws but the Local Autonomy Office was opposed to it and urged GHQ to oppose it.
