The New York State School Boards Association says supplies now average $100 per high school student while a middle schooler averages $60, The New York Times reported Saturday.

Some school boards and parent groups have started putting caps on lists of supplies or spending amounts asked of parents. Expensive items such as flash drives or digital cameras are sometimes included along with pencils and paper towels, The Times said.

"You hear grumblings from different districts where parents look at these lists of supplies and ask whether they're all necessary," said David Albert, a spokesman for the New York State School Boards Association, calling it a particularly "burgeoning issue right now" in difficult financial times for many families.

Teachers, however, may also be dealing with budget cuts and tighter dollars. New York City this year slashed the Teacher's Choice fund, which reimburses teachers for their own spending on classroom supplies, from $20 million to $13 million. It means teachers who used to count on $240 each now now only receive $150 reimbursement.