Arkansas' elected officials have made repeated financial decisions that have left the state with a debt burden of $2.9 billion, according to the analysis. That burden equates to $3,600 for every state taxpayer. Arkansas' financial problems stem from unfunded retirement obligations in the form of pension and other postemployment benefits. Of the $13.1 billion of retirement benefits promised, the state has not funded $3 billion of pension benefits and $2.3 billion of retiree health care benefits.
Arkansas' financial condition is not only concerning, but also misleading as government officials have failed to disclose significant amounts of retirement debt on the state's balance sheet. As a result, residents and taxpayers have been presented with an inaccurate and untruthful accounting of the state government's finances.
Here are some of the main findings from the report:
- Arkansas earns a "C" grade for its financial health based on TIA's grading scale.
- Arkansas needs $2.9 billion to pay all of its bills.
- That works out to a Taxpayer Burden of -$3,600, or the amount of money each Arkansas taxpayer would need to contribute to erase the state's debt.
- Of the state's roughly $9.5 billion in bills, unfunded pension and other post-employment benefits (OPEB) account for nearly $3 billion and $2.3 billion, respectively.
- Arkansas continues to hide $877.1 million in unfunded other post-employment benefits, such as retiree health care, though a new accounting rule taking effect in the 2018 fiscal year will require state and local governments to report all OPEB liabilities on the balance sheet.
Here's the truth:
- Arkansas has $6.6 billion available in assets to pay $9.5 billion worth of bills.
- The outcome: A $2.9 billion shortfall and a $3,600 Taxpayer Burden.
- Despite reporting all of its pension debt, the state continues to hide $877.1 million of its retiree health care debt.
- Arkansas' reported net position is inflated by $1.5 billion, largely because it has delayed recognizing changes to its net pension liability.
State Data Lab is a project of Truth in Accounting
Tags: Arkansas, Finances, debt, spending, data, State Data, Trth in Accounting To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks!
Source
No comments:
Post a Comment