A small slice of the federal pie

Bob CollinsBob Collins Apr 23, 2008
6

Now that you’ve paid your federal taxes, Minnesota, you can await a thank-you note from Louisiana. Or Alaska. Or Mississippi.

According to a Census Bureau report out today (pdf here), those are the big winners in the “federal spending sweepstakes.” The report lists the total amount of federal dollars that flow to states in the form of salaries or programs or projects.

Here’s the national map:

census_map.jpg

Minnesota? We’re #48 with a little over $6,000 in per capita federal spending; that puts us just ahead of Utah and Nevada and just behind Wisconsin.

The report is based on 2006 data. A survey in 2005 showed that Minnesota received 73 cents in federal spending for every dollar paid in federal taxes, which tied the state with Connecticut for the bottom of the heap. Mississippi, by contrast, got $2 back for every $1 paid in. (Hurricane Katrina recovery at work.)

Today’s report does not suggest that ranking is going to change.