State + local · FY2018–25
The State Tab — Who's Picking It Up?
How bad is your state — the whole bill, not the press release. Five years of spending, bonded debt, pensions, and retiree healthcare. Local governments included.
Bonded debt + pension UAL + OPEB UAL. The three terms add; nothing is zeroed out. The headline number. Big states look worse because they are bigger. State government plus the largest local governments in the state.
Tap a state or city. Circles = 80% of that state’s city debt. Scroll or pinch to zoom.
California
$597.2B debt + $311.6B pensions + $155.4B OPEB = $1.06T · Bonded debt is the largest slice · Medicaid FY2024 $157.1B (annual, not in the tab) · local governments carry 63% of the tab
Medicaid is this year’s CMS-64 spend, not a liability, so it is not inside the tab. Tab + Medicaid = $1.22T. CA DHCS enacted 2026–27 total funds $226.3B (Medi-Cal + other DHCS). Different year and a broader department total than CMS-64.
Outlays since 2018
State + localNet = expenditure − revenue over FY2020–24. COVID-era federal aid makes 2020–22 look flush in some states. FY2025 is estimated from Census FY2023–24 growth. Debt path: $493.1B → $613.8B.