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State debt
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The tables below give the outstanding state debt for each of the 50 states as of 2015. This information comes from the United States Census Bureau, a report produced by State Budget Solutions (SBS) focusing on state and local government budgets, and a report by Truth in Accounting focusing on debt per capita. It is important to note that these figures reflect various sources with different methodologies. The census figures reflect only the outstanding debt per state according to the census. It does not include any debt from local governments in the states, the federal government, or unfunded pension liabilities and unemployment trust fund loans. Information on debt per capita was not directly available from the census, and was calculated using the census figures for state debt and population. SBS debt figures were calculated "based on figures from each state's respective fiscal year 2012 comprehensive annual financial report." To access the complete SBS report, including methodology details, click here. To access the complete TIA report, click here.[1][2][3]
Budget conflicts
Throughout the 2017 state legislative season, Ballotpedia tracked 10 state governments whose budget processes involved conflict or had the potential to result in a partial government shutdown or spending cuts to government services. These states included three states with Democratic state government trifectas, one state with a Republican trifecta, and six states with divided governments. A state government trifecta is a term used to describe single-party government—when one political party controls the legislative and executive branches of a state's government. The 2017 state legislative sessions began with six Democratic trifectas, 25 Republican trifectas, and 19 states under divided government. Click on any of the links below to learn more about these conflicts and state budget processes.
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Illinois
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Wisconsin
- Washington
Debt by state
The figures below are listed by source with the most recent data appearing first.
Truth in Accounting
2017
In a report released in September 2017 by the nonprofit Truth in Accounting (TIA), states were ranked by taxpayer burden, a term that reflects "the amount each taxpayer would have to send to their state's treasury in order for the state to be debt-free" as of 2016. The table below lists the taxpayer burden or taxpayer surplus in the states from 2009 to 2016. In the table below, negative figures represent a taxpayer burden, while positive figures represent a taxpayer surplus. The map below the table presents the same information. States in blue have a higher burden, while states in lighter blue or gray have a lower burden or a surplus.[3]
To figure a state’s taxpayer burden or surplus, TIA looked at a state’s total reported assets minus capital assets and assets restricted by law (buildings, roads, land, etc.) to calculate “available assets,” which were then compared to the amount of money the state owes in bills, including retirement obligations such as pension plans and healthcare benefits for retirees. If the difference between available assets and total bills was positive, TIA called this a taxpayer surplus; if it was negative, this was a taxpayer burden. This amount was then divided by the number of individual tax returns with a positive tax liability, thus expressing the total state surplus or burden on a per-taxpayer basis.[4] Click on the arrow in the upper righthand corner of the table to view debt figures for more states.
United States Census Bureau
2015
The table below presents the total state debt as well as debt per capita for each state in 2015. Click on the arrow in the upper righthand corner of the table to view debt figures for more states.
2014
The table below presents the total state debt as well as debt per capita for each state in 2014. Click on the arrow in the upper righthand corner of the table to view debt figures for more states.
State Budget Solutions 2012 report
The table below presents the total state debt as well as debt per capita for each state in 2012. Click on the arrow in the upper righthand corner of the table to view debt figures for more states.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ State Budget Solutions, "State Budget Solutions' Fourth Annual State Debt Report," January 8, 2014
- ↑ As of September 2016, State Budget Solutions had been absorbed by the American Legislative Exchange Council.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Truth in Accounting, "Financial State of the States," September 19, 2017
- ↑ Truth in Accounting, "Accounting Methodology," accessed October 2, 2017
