Hot off the Press! The State Report is Out: How Did Your State Do???

DECEMBER 10, 2023

Now Available

Our annual report on state fiscal health. Debt among the states improved slightly. Going from $1.2 trillion down to $938.6 billion. 

What happened? 

How did your state do? Read the full report below. 

https://www.truthinaccounting.org/news/detail/financial-state-of-the-states-2023

Accounting is a methodology for measuring value. It's the process of identifying, measuring, and communicating economic information to enable well-informed assessments and choices for those who rely on the informationgood accounting matters!  

 

Financial State of the States 2022

OCTOBER 24, 2022

This year's report found that 31 states did not have enough money to pay all of their bills.

New study measures financial transparency among state governments

NOVEMBER 16, 2021

PRESS RELEASE

Financial Transparency Score 2021

NOVEMBER 16, 2021

To encourage the publication of transparent and accurate government financial information, Truth in Accounting has created a transparency score for financial reporting by the states. 

Majority of state finances worsened during beginning of pandemic

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Financial State of the States 2021

SEPTEMBER 28, 2021

Truth in Accounting's twelfth annual Financial State of the States report, a nationwide analysis of the most recent state government financial information.

Understanding Indiana’s largest pension system

AUGUST 26, 2021 | INDIANA PUBLIC RETIREMENT SYSTEM | by Indiana Public Retirement System

Includes “Both PERF and TRF are hybrid plans in which both the employer and member have funds at risk. … This concept has been part of the Indiana system for a generation. … TRF’s pre-1996 fund is a pay-as-you-go plan that has been in place since 1921. … Typically, in pay-as-you-go plans, no funds are set aside today to fund projected benefits years in the future. Instead, these plans are funded in the year the benefit payment is provided to the member. ”

Study reveals school choice savings, highlights Indiana’s decreasing educational spending

JUNE 23, 2021 | WFYI PBS-TV NEWS (INDIANA) | by Jeanie Lindsay

By Jeanie Lindsay, includes “A new study says school choice options in Indiana have saved the state millions in education spending. But researchers say the cost-savings come as the state spends less on education than it did more than a decade ago.”
 

In rare bipartisan unity, lawmakers pass state budget with robust K-12 spending

APRIL 23, 2021 | INDYSTAR (INDIANA) | by Kaitlin Lange, Arika Herron

By Kaitlin Lange and Arika Herron, includes “In their final hours at the Indiana Statehouse Thursday, lawmakers overwhelmingly passed the two-year state budget filled with one-time spending and an unexpected amount of new education dollars."

Hoosiers lead the voucher way

APRIL 23, 2021 | THE WALL STREET JOURNAL | by Editorial

Editorial, includes “Ten years ago in these columns, we hailed Indiana for its leadership in establishing one of America’s most ambitious school voucher programs. On Thursday the Indiana Legislature built on that achievement by approving a budget that will take the program to 48,000 students a year from about 37,000.”

New state budget will spend billions in state, federal dollars to pay debt, invest in future

APRIL 21, 2021 | WFYI (INDIANA) | by Brandon Smith

By Brandon Smith, includes “Gov. Eric Holcomb said the state’s new, $37 billion state budget will be “transformational” for Indiana’s future. The final budget proposal unveiled Tuesday uses a combination of state tax revenues and money from the latest federal COVID-19 relief package.”

Population in State – Illinois vs. Indiana

MARCH 18, 2021 | DATA-Z | by Data - Z

We’ve updated our Data-Z website to include the latest Census population data through 2020. The link above takes you to a “pretty picture

Indiana ranks high in transparent, accurate government financial data

NOVEMBER 18, 2020 | THE WARRICK COUNTY STANDARD | by J.D. Davidson

When it comes to allowing taxpayers to easily analyze state finances, Indiana is one of the best states in the nation, according to a report released Tuesday by Truth in Accounting.

Thirty-nine states ill-prepared for coronavirus pandemic

SEPTEMBER 22, 2020

The 2020 Financial State of the States report surveys the fiscal health of the 50 states prior to the coronavirus pandemic. This data is released today by Truth in Accounting (TIA), a think tank that analyzes government financial reporting.

Understanding the details of county government budgeting process

JULY 9, 2020 | HAMILTON COUNTY REPORTER (INDIANA)

While we hear more about the federal and state governments for the laws they pass and policy decisions they make, it is the local governments that are responsible for public education, law enforcement, road maintenance, parks, public health programs and more. One good way for people to get a solid understanding of the county government’s activities is to look at its budget.

State general revenue shortfall projections

JUNE 1, 2020 | by Bill Bergman, Sheila Weinberg

How large could the shortfall in state government general revenues be, amidst the coronavirus and related crises? 

Illinois’ shameless, dishonest ask for a federal bailout

APRIL 24, 2020 | CHICAGO TRIBUNE

It is not surprising an Illinois politician finally put in writing what economists and financial watchdogs have been warning for years: That elected officials who failed to take seriously decades of fiscal warning bells in this state eventually would seek a bailout from the federal government.

County hears proposal for BCSO pension plan changes

MARCH 3, 2020 | QMIX, KORN COUNTRY RADIO (SOUTH CENTRAL INDIANA | by Barney Quick

At the Bartholomew County Council work session on Monday evening, Sheriff’s Merit Board president Susan Fye and OneAmerica actuary Stan Brown presented updated benefits package proposals for the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) to the board.

Hoosier health lesson

FEBRUARY 24, 2020 | THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

ObamaCare turns 10 next month, and one piece of its legacy was a nationwide surrender on controlling health-care costs. The law has accelerated consolidation among insurers and providers, who have in turn concealed prices and increased costs. Indiana is trying to change that.

Reducing government debt

FEBRUARY 5, 2020 | INDIANA SENATE REPUBLICANS

This week the Indiana Senate passed House Bill 1007, which would eliminate almost $300 million in state debt and save Hoosier taxpayers $135 million by avoiding future interest payments. This debt relief comes in the form of cash funding infrastructure projects which were already approved in the most recent state budget. We originally planned to pay for these projects with bonds, but after a one-time windfall due to federal tax changes, the state finds itself with a large enough surplus to fund these projects independently, instead of indebting itself.

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