The entitlement crisis is seen most vividly at the state level in the unfunded liabilities of government employee pension systems. But getting a handle on the true scope of these debts is difficult. As Bryan Leonard of StateBudgetSolutions.org wrote in a recent study, "one of the most insidious aspects of pension liability is its stealth nature. Pension obligations don't appear on state balance sheets. As such, states with billions in unfunded pension liabilities may technically brag of 'balanced' budgets while being swamped by pension debt. For example, Arkansas claimed a balanced budget last year, but had at least $2 billion in unfunded pension liabilities. Indeed, the unfunded pension promises in most states dwarf the total outstanding debt, tax revenues and spending." (read more)
Monday, April 11, 2011
Think the U.S. debt is bad? Check out the states!
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FINANCIAL EVENTS
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