Truth in Accounting recently released the 2021 version of their “Financial State of the States,” which analyzes each of the fifty state’s fiscal status.  Excerpt:

Truth in Accounting has released its twelfth annual Financial State of the States report, a nationwide analysis of the most recent state government financial information. This comprehensive analysis surveys the fiscal health of the 50 states during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Despite receiving federal assistance from the CARES Act and other COVID-19 related grants, the majority of states’ finances worsened. Total debt among the 50 states amounted to $1.5 trillion at the end of the fiscal year 2020.

Download and read the entire report here.

Our own Alaska came off pretty well.  In fact, Alaska came off damn well, in first place by a wide margin, largely due to the fact that 1) our state government isn’t too bloated and b) our economy is largely based on energy extraction, which of course the Biden(‘s handlers) Administration is trying to squash.  But the fact is that the state has a large surplus even after substantial payments into the Permanent Fund, and rising energy prices will help that in the short term.

What’s interesting here is to look at the rankings of the states in relation to each other.  While it’s easy to note that the top five are all red states and the bottom five, all blue – if you look at the in-betweens, there is a tendency but not a hard rule.  Our former home of increasingly-liberal Colorado is rated at #15, one place ahead of a sharply reddening Florida; Texas is at #33, while Oregon comes in pretty good at #10 and Virginia at #12.

Oh, and the common theme amongst the worst-performing states?  Unfunded public-sector pension commitments.  Haw!

Still, though, it’s a pretty decent spectrum, red at the top end, blue at the bottom.  Anyone want to bet on anyone in the Imperial City even reading this report, much less acting on it?

(We really love Alaska.)