Alaska leads the list of states with highest per capita debt load

Alaska is tops in terms of state debt per capita.

So says a report from the State Budget Solutions Project, which describes itself as a nonpartisan organization working for fundamental reforms in state government.

The group says its latest annual report on state debt shows that state governments together “face a crushing debt of more than $4 trillion.”

State debt amounts to $13,425 for every man, woman and child in America, the organization said Oct. 2.

“The largest per capita debt figure for all fifty states is Alaska, where each person’s share of their state’s debt stands at $31,141,” the group said.

New Jersey, Hawaii, Connecticut and Illinois round out the top five states with the highest debt levels per capita.

At the other end of the spectrum, Nebraska has the lowest total debt per capita at $4,249 for each resident. Tennessee, Indiana, Florida and Idaho are the next lowest.

Among other oil-producing states, Texas has state debt per capita of $11,178, and North Dakota marks at $8,943.

Alaska’s position would seem curious, given its lucrative flow of oil revenue. Further, the state has enormous savings accounts including the $42 billion Alaska Permanent Fund.

Alaska’s population is small relative to most other states, but State Budget Solutions says state debt “cannot be explained away solely as a function of population.” It found that many of the states with large populations also had high per capita debts.

In absolute terms, Alaska’s debt is about $22.5 billion, the State Budget Solutions report shows. With a population of about 722,700 people, this translates to per capita debt of $31,141.

An important question is, what constitutes debt?

In Alaska’s case, a relatively small portion of its obligations is in the form of outstanding debt such as bonds — about $2.1 billion.

The state’s larger debts are what’s known as “unfunded actuarial accrued liability,” or UAAL. These are pensions and other post-employment benefits such as health care, amounting to $20.4 billion.

State Budget Solutions says its national data show that “without serious and immediate reforms, lawmakers will eventually have little choice but to drastically raise taxes and slash services.”

See the state debt report at statebudgetsolutions.org.

—Wesley Loy