They are, but at a hyper local level. School districts generally coincide loosely with city boundaries, and are usually funded through a combination of local ta

They are, but at a hyper local level. School districts generally coincide loosely with city boundaries, and are usually funded through a combination of local taxes (usually property taxes, but it depends on the district), state education budgets, and a small amount of federal funding. Because the bulk of the funding comes from local sources, when a local economy collapses the school district has no backstop, and their funding can get much closer to just the state and federal funds. When states reduce budgets due to those same economic issues, those areas get devastated.