The 50 States Ranked

If you're young and mobile, you might want to check out a new report to see which states are in good fiscal shape and which aren't, especially since states in good financial condition tend to take a far smaller bite out of their residents' wallets than states in bad condition.

The Mercatus Center at George Mason University rates the 50 states in four categories—budget solvency, cash solvency, long-run solvency, and service level solvency—to arrive at this final Fiscal Condition Index.

The 10 states in the best fiscal condition (1st to 10th):

• Alaska
• South Dakota
• North Dakota
• Nebraska
• Wyoming
• Florida
• Ohio
• Tennessee
• Montana
• Alabama

The 10 states in the worst fiscal condition (41st to 50th):

• West Virginia
• Pennsylvania
• Hawaii
• Maryland
• New York
• California
• Massachusetts
• Illinois
• Connecticut
• New Jersey