Every dollar of taxpayers money spent on green subsidies is a dollar not spent on public education, social safety nets, or transportation.  State lawmakers should stop throwing away scarce budgetary resources on the green pipe dream and let the private sector decide which green ideas are viable. Find the summary here and the full report here.

State Budget Solutions' research and analysis of ten-year budget trends in every state explains just how states ended up where they are today, and debunks the myths of states' "balanced budget" and "adjusted numbers" claims.  A state's general fund cannot be used to assess that state's overall fiscal responsibility, because states balance them using budget gimmicks.

The Mercatus Center at George Mason University published a report Monday penned by Harvard economist Jeffery Miron that attempts to examine the fiscal health of each of the 50 states.  Miron seeks to bring to light many of these troubling debt issues and paint a picture of the shipwreck awaiting every state if they fail to alter course soon.

Bryan Leonard's thoughts on Harvard economist Jeffery Miron's prediction that every single state will have over a 90% debt to GDP ratio in the next two to three decades.

State Budget Solutions would like to present the "Reality Check" award to Indiana for its impressive work on the state budget, education reforms, and the creation of health savings accounts for state workers.

State Budget Solutions would like to present the "Reality Check" award to Indiana  for its impressive work on the state budget, education reforms, and the creation of health savings accounts for state workers.

Year after year of budget shortfalls, multiple government shutdowns (this isn't the first time and is in fact the second time in six years Minnesota has been in this position), and the 22,000 state workers providing "non-essential" services are all a testament to the fact that state government in Minnesota is bloated.

Bloated state spending levels and trillions of dollars in unfunded government employee pension liabilities pose huge financial obstacles to economic recovery in the 50 states today. This begs the million-or trillion-dollar question: Why are some states prospering while others are still struggling?

Public pensions are in a financial mess in nearly every state. As states seek ways to bring unfunded pension liabilities under control and restore solvency, Utah provides an example of meaningful and effective reform.

Raising taxes may be the worst thing legislators can do for state revenues if higher taxes drive high earners away and leads them to “vote with their feet” by moving to another state with lower taxes.

To balance his state's budget, Gov. Daniels pursues major reforms that lead to long-term structural balance in the budget while simultaneously enhancing services provided by the state.

As many state legislatures trying to pass budgets struggle with partisan gridlock, the governors of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, and Washington-all Democrats-are actively seeking to reform pensions and bring financial stability to their states.

 Cities around the country have found that they can save money and provide better services to their citizens by privatizing many of the traditional roles of government.

Yesterday the Pew Center on the States released "The Widening Gap," an update to its "Trillion Dollar Gap" report from last year. Using updated pension data from fiscal year 2009, Pew highlights the increases in unfunded retirement benefit liabilities since its last report.  The new report finds that states have an aggregate $660 billion in unfunded pension liabilities and $604 billion in unfunded liabilities for health care and other benefits. 

Listen to a conference call about biennial vs. annual budgeting with Bryan Leonard and Bob Williams.

The comparison of biennial and annual budgets recently made headlines thanks to Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, who vetoed a spending bill that only appropriated funds for one year and instead is insisting on bills that plan for two years of spending. Brandstad is adamant that a biennial budget is critical to creating responsibility, but are biennial budgets really so much better?

Branstad clearly feels strongly about the benefits of biennial budgets, but what makes a two year budget so different?

Government workers are getting better retirement benefit deals than employees in the private sector.

The jig may finally be up for state pension funds. After years of fooling the public and the federal government, academics and the media are starting to take notice of the growing crisis.  But just how big is the problem?  This SBS study reveals the true extent of the crisis.