Pexels.com
Pexels.com
North Carolina would need $4 billion to pay all of its bills, including public employers’ pension benefits, according to a new ranking of the states’ fiscal health by Truth in Accounting (TIA).
North Carolina ranked 14th among the 50 states on fiscal health, according to the analysis by TIA, which is a Chicago-based nonprofit that reports on fiscal data from state and local governments.
The amount of the state’s shortfall in funds to pay off its bills amounts to $1,300 per taxpayer, the study found.
The TIA gave the state a financial grade of “C.”
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2019 State Rankings on Fiscal Health
| Rank | State | Money Needed / Available to Pay Bills (in Billions) | Per-Taxpayer Debt / Surplus | Financial Grade |
| 1 | Alaska | $19.7 | $74,200 | A |
| 2 | North Dakota | $8.5 | $30,700 | A |
| 3 | Wyoming | $4 | $20,800 | A |
| 4 | Utah | $4.9 | $5,300 | B |
| 5 | Idaho | $1.5 | $2,900 | B |
| 6 | Tennessee | $5.8 | $2,800 | B |
| 7 | South Dakota | $0.85 | $2,800 | B |
| 8 | Nebraska | $1.3 | $2,000 | B |
| 9 | Oregon | $2.2 | $1,600 | B |
| 10 | Iowa | $0.78 | $700 | B |
| 11 | Minnesota | -$0.45 | -$200 | C |
| 12 | Virginia | -$3.5 | -$1,200 | C |
| 13 | Oklahoma | -$1.3 | -$1,200 | C |
| 14 | North Carolina | -$4 | -$1,300 | C |
| 15 | Indiana | -$3.6 | -$1,700 | C |
| 16 | Florida | -$12.1 | -$1,800 | C |
| 17 | Montana | -$0.75 | -$2,100 | C |
| 18 | Arkansas | -$1.8 | -$2,300 | C |
| 19 | Arizona | -$5.2 | -$2,500 | C |
| 20 | Nevada | -$3.1 | -$3,100 | C |
| 21 | Wisconsin | -$6.7 | -$3,200 | C |
| 22 | Georgia | -$10.2 | -$3,500 | C |
| 23 | Missouri | -$8.3 | -$4,300 | C |
| 24 | New Hampshire | -$2.7 | -$5,000 | D |
| 25 | Ohio | -$26.6 | -$6,000 | D |
| 26 | Kansas | -$6.5 | -$7,000 | D |
| 27 | Colorado | -$14.5 | -$7,200 | D |
| 28 | Washington | -$20 | -$7,400 | D |
| 29 | Maine | -$3.5 | -$7,400 | D |
| 30 | West Virginia | -$4.3 | -$8,300 | D |
| 31 | Mississippi | -$7.4 | -$10,000 | D |
| 32 | Alabama | -$15.9 | -$12,000 | D |
| 33 | Texas | -$98.7 | -$12,100 | D |
| 34 | New Mexico | -$7.7 | -$13,300 | D |
| 35 | Rhode Island | -$5.4 | -$13,900 | D |
| 36 | South Carolina | -$21.8 | -$14,500 | D |
| 37 | Maryland | -$33.5 | -$15,500 | D |
| 38 | Michigan | -$55 | -$17,000 | D |
| 39 | Pennsylvania | -$75 | -$17,100 | D |
| 40 | Louisiana | -$22 | -$17,700 | D |
| 41 | Vermont | -$4.5 | -$19,000 | D |
| 42 | New York | -$136.6 | -$20,500 | F |
| 43 | California | -$275 | -$21,800 | F |
| 44 | Kentucky | -$33.4 | -$25,700 | F |
| 45 | Delaware | -$9.1 | -$27,100 | F |
| 46 | Hawaii | -$15.4 | -$31,200 | F |
| 47 | Massachusetts | -$82 | -$31,200 | F |
| 48 | Connecticut | -$67.8 | -$51,800 | F |
| 49 | Illinois | -$223.9 | -$52,600 | F |
| 50 | New Jersey | -$208.8 | -$65,100 | F |
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