California

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California owes more than it owns.
California has a -$16,000 Taxpayer Burden.™
California is a Sinkhole State without enough assets to cover its debt.
Elected officials have created a Taxpayer Burden™, which is each taxpayer's share of state bills after its available assets have been tapped.
TIA's Taxpayer Burden™ measurement incorporates both assets and liabilities, not just pension debt.
California only has $267.5 billion of assets available to pay bills totaling $486.4 billion.
Because California doesn't have enough money to pay its bills, it has a -$218.9 billion financial hole. To fill it, each California taxpayer would have to send -$16,000 to the state.
California's reported net position is overstated by $7.8 billion, largely because the state delays recognizing losses incurred when the net pension liability increases.
The state's financial report was released 316 days after its fiscal year end, which is considered untimely according to the 180 day standard.

IN THE NEWS
Financial State of the States 2026

OCTOBER 15, 2026

Our seventeenth annual Financial State of the States (FSOS) report provides a comprehensive analysis of the fiscal health of all 50 states. 

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