MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WMOT) -- A new study claims the State of Tennessee is failing to pay its own way.
WMOT reporting partner Wallethub.com has just completed its annual survey of the states most dependent on the federal government. Tennessee ranks 5th this year, getting back a $1.28 cents for every dollar it sends to Washington.
Analyst Jill Gonzalez says Tennessee fares even worse when you consider just how much of the state’s total budget is actually federal money.
“In Tennessee, 40 percent of its state revenue comes right from the federal government. That’s the third highest in the country, only behind Louisiana at 42 percent and Mississippi at 43 percent.”
Tennessee is home to large federal facilities that could skew the numbers, including the Oak Ridge Labs in East Tennessee and Ft. Campbell on the Kentucky line, but Gonzalez says the state is home to only an average number of federal jobs.
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