Where has all the money gone, Why are the states always broke?

[bagrman]

Well This might explain some of it, seems all of the states have their own investments, and are quit happy to hold on to them.
NY State CAFR Pension Wealth Alone - $133 Billion
.
http://www.rense.com/general74/donf.htm
.
The Complete NY State Government Retirement Fund CAFR 2005
(Comprehensive Annual Financial Report).
http://www.osc.state.ny.us/retire/aboutus/annrep05/arcover05.htm
.
The current domestic and international stock holdings for this ONE CAFR:
http://www.osc.state.ny.us/retire/aboutus/annrep05/assetlist091405.pdf
.

This is only 1 states CAFR report.


Latr

[SharonAnn]

1. Federal $ to states have been cut way back. States still have to provide

services. D'oh.

[MonkeyFunk]

2. Back in the 80s

a lot of formerly-federal responsibilities were shifted back to the states.

And I'm not sure how pension money figures into this. Those funds are there to protect long-term obligations to the employees who paid into them, NOT to fund the government.

[Nite Owl]

3. What does the NYS retirement fund

have to do with states being broke? It's state retiree's pension money.

I just don't get your point.

[valerief]

4. s/d

[LiberalEsto]

5. The money's gone to Halliburton

by way of Iraq contracts

[MOB]

6. dont understand Q

I dont understand the question - actually many state budgets are posting unexpected surpluses this year - CT posted a surprise surplus, for example.

[bagrman]

7. It equals $133billion, with a tiny slice of that you could fund a lot of schools.

[Ilsa]

8. We had a surplus in Texas and then Dumbya became governor.

And it all went away.

[southerncrone]

9. I find that absolutely shocking!

:sarcasm: