Table 28
State and Local Government Debt Per Capita, 1997
Rank	State	Amt.		Rank	State	Amt.
1	Alaska	$11,583		27	Oregon	$4,037
2	NEW YORK	$8,352		28	Maine	3,857
3	Massachusetts	6,790		29	Nebraska	3,761
4	Connecticut	6,620		30	Louisiana	3,725
5	Rhode Island	6,499		31	Montana	3,722
6	Delaware	6,456		32	South Carolina	3,721
7	Hawaii	6,205		33	West Virginia	3,693
8	Nevada	6,118		34	New Mexico	3,676
9	New Hampshire	6,028		35	South Dakota	3,660
10	Washington	5,989		36	Michigan	3,634
11	Utah	5,805		37	Georgia	3,458
12	Kentucky	5,381		38	Kansas	3,374
13	New Jersey	5,380		39	North Carolina	3,218
14	Minnesota	5,008		40	North Dakota	3,006
15	Colorado	4,996		41	Oklahoma	2,893
16	Pennsylvania	4,983		42	Alabama	2,892
17	California	4,846		43	Tennessee	2,882
18	Florida	4,798		44	Indiana	2,857
19	Arizona	4,669		45	Missouri	2,798
20	Vermont	4,515		46	Ohio	2,774
21	Maryland	4,421		47	Mississippi	2,560
22	Wyoming	4,376		48	Arkansas	2,379
23	Illinois	4,342		49	Iowa	2,192
24	Wisconsin	4,198		50	Idaho	2,180
25	Virginia	4,079		U.S. average		$4,562
26	Texas	4,048		N.Y.S. % above avg.		83.1%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau data; calculations by The Public Policy Institute http://www.census.gov/govs/www/cog.html
Per-capita state debt in New York rose by 29% from 1995 to 2000, according to the Office of the State Comptroller.