California & New York are top debtors.

• Position: State Budgets

New York's total state debt is more than $300,000,000,000, and that only ranks second in the nation, according to State Budget Solutions, Alexandria, Va., a nonprofit organization advocating for fundamental reform of state budgets, which has released its third annual state debt report. It shows that the nation's total state debt presently is around 4.19 trillion dollars.

SBS's report, which takes into account all state debt and future spending obligations, found that the five states with the largest debt are California ($617,000,000,000), New York, Texas ($286,000,000,000), New Jersey ($282,000,000,000), and Illinois ($271,000,000,000). The states with the smallest debt are Vermont ($5,800,000,000), North Dakota ($6,100,000,000), South Dakota ($6,500,000,000), Wyoming ($6,900,000,000), and Nebraska ($7,800,000,000).

"These budget numbers should serve as a wake-up call for every state legislature around the country. Our states are in trouble and no amount of budget gimmicks, political posturing, or hiding bills will fix the massive debt that they face," stresses Bob Williams, president of State Budget Solutions. "There is no option for status quo...