One Last Post Before A Bike Ride -- Nothing About the Bakken Directly -- A Map of The US States In Relatively Good Financial Health

This is a great article: "US states are coming close to the end of a three-year trek back to pre-recession growth."

Just in time for the Great Recession of 2013.

The article noted:

More than half of the states have boosted spending for education and Medicaid, the healthcare program for the poor, this fiscal year, and nearly all, 42, have higher spending levels than in fiscal 2012.

In the same light, fewer states had to close budget gaps this fiscal year than in the last two, and those shortfalls were also smaller than ones they eliminated in fiscal 2011 and 2012.

Total general fund revenues in fiscal 2013 will surpass the pre-recession peaks reached in fiscal 2008, and many states' spending will also be higher than in that fiscal year.

Still, the report noted 21 of the 50 states say revenues will not return to their pre-recession highs this fiscal year, and 24 say spending remains below fiscal 2008 levels.

The article did not list the states in good health, nor was a map provided.

Because I'm in a good mood, I went to the trouble of identifying the states that are in good health and have put them graphically. When you get to the link, the states in good health were put in red. 

To confirm that I had the correct states, I went through the exercise again, and came up with a graphic that verified the original link. In this link, the states in good health are in blue.

By having one  map with the states in good health in red, and in another map with the states in good health in blue, minimized accusations that the exercise was political.