According to a new report, Louisianans might need to dig deeper into their couch cushions to fund their share of the state’s debt.
According to the right-leaning think tank Truth in Accounting’s annual Financial State of the States report, each Louisiana resident owes $18,900 to pay off the state’s debts. The report ranked Louisiana 43rd, saying the state owes $22.8 billion, and gave the state a D grade for having a taxpayer burden between $5,000 and $20,000.
The state, according to Truth in Accounting, has $27.4 billion in assets and cash on hand to pay $50.2 billion in bills, including $13.3 billion in bond debt, $10.3 billion in unfunded pension debt and $9.9 billion in unfunded health care costs for state and local retirees.
The state’s pension fund might be on more solid ground after voters recently passed a constitutional amendment. This past Saturday, Louisiana voters passed Amendment 3 with 56% in favor, which requires lawmakers to apply 25% of the state’s nonrecurring revenues to the state’s pension debt.
Last year, the report said the individual taxpayer burden for Louisiana was $14,100 and ranked the state 38th.
This year’s report, which uses the state’s comprehensive annual financial reports, says 28 states, down from 31 in 2022, didn’t have enough money to pay their bills. Read the full story from The Center Square.
