How many of your state's taxes leave the state (and don't come back)

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How many of your state's taxes leave the state (and don't come back)

taxes

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

In 2017, New Jersey gave $24.75 billion more than it got back from the federal government.

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  • People and businesses in every state pay taxes to the federal government to help fund vital services.
  • Not every state contributes equally, however. Some pay more than they get back while many states receive more than they put in.
  • In 2017, New Jersey paid $24.75 billion more to the federal government than it got back compared to New Mexico, which received $20.096 billion more than its citizens paid.

Citizens and companies in every US state pay taxes to the government, but the resources and services that come from this collective funding aren't distributed equally. Depending on a state's level of need, population, etc. some states receive far more federal funding than others.

The New York State Comptroller conducted a study on exactly this for fiscal year 2017. It found that New Jersey sees more of its taxes leave the state than any other, $24.75 billion that year, and on the flip side, New Mexico received $20.096 billion more from the federal government than its citizens and corporations paid. Based on the state's population, that amounts to a net gain of nearly $10,000 per person.

See how much your state gains or loses in taxes. A positive number indicates more money going back to the state than is paid out, while a negative number means the state is contributing more than it gets back.

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No. 51: Washington, DC

No. 51: Washington, DC

(This one’s a bit of an outlier since it’s not a state.)

Balance of payments total: $39.866 billion

Per capita: $57,447

No. 50: New Jersey

No. 50: New Jersey

Balance of payments total: -$24.75 billion

Per capita: -$2,748

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No. 49: Massachusetts

No. 49: Massachusetts

Balance of payments total: -$10.511 billion

Per capita: -$1,532

No. 48: Connecticut

No. 48: Connecticut

Balance of payments total: -$4,455

Per capita: -$1,242

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No. 47: New York

No. 47: New York

Balance of payments total: -$24.138 billion

Per capita: -$2,748

No. 46: Illinois

No. 46: Illinois

Balance of payments total: -$14.824 billion

Per capita: -$1,158

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No. 45: Minnesota

No. 45: Minnesota

Balance of payments total: -$6.011 billion

Per capita: -$1,078

No. 44: New Hampshire

No. 44: New Hampshire

Balance of payments total: -$749 million

Per capita: -$558

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No. 43: California

No. 43: California

Balance of payments total: -$13.762 billion

Per capita: -$348

No. 42: Wyoming

No. 42: Wyoming

Balance of payments total: -$169 million

Per capita: -$291

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No. 41: Nebraska

No. 41: Nebraska

Balance of payments total: -$267 million

Per capita: -$139

No. 40: Utah

No. 40: Utah

Balance of payments total: -$236 million

Per capita: -$76

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No. 39: Washington

No. 39: Washington

Balance of payments total: $976 million

Per capita: $132

No. 38: Wisconsin

No. 38: Wisconsin

Balance of payments total: $1.266 billion

Per capita: $212

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No. 37: South Dakota

No. 37: South Dakota

Balance of payments total: $256 million

Per capita: $295

No. 36: North Dakota

No. 36: North Dakota

Balance of payments total: $234 million

Per capita: $310

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No. 35: Colorado

No. 35: Colorado

Balance of payments total: $2.173 billion

Per capita: $387

No. 34: Iowa

No. 34: Iowa

Balance of payments total: $2.507 billion

Per capita: $797

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No. 33: Delaware

No. 33: Delaware

Balance of payments total: $915 million

Per capita: $951

No. 32: Nevada

No. 32: Nevada

Balance of payments total: $2.935 billion

Per capita: $979

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No. 31: Kansas

No. 31: Kansas

Balance of payments total: $3.06 billion

Per capita: $1,051

No. 30: Texas

No. 30: Texas

Balance of payments total: $36.240 billion

Per capita: $1,280

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No. 29: Indiana

No. 29: Indiana

Balance of payments total: $11.482 billion

Per capita: $1,722

No. 28: Oregon

No. 28: Oregon

Balance of payments total: $7.571 billion

Per capita: $1,827

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No. 27: Michigan

No. 27: Michigan

Balance of payments total: $21.3 billion

Per capita: $2,138

No. 26: Georgia

No. 26: Georgia

Balance of payments total: $22.841 billion

Per capita: $2,190

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No. 25: Ohio

No. 25: Ohio

Balance of payments total: $26.039 billion

Per capita: $2,233

No. 24: Pennsylvania

No. 24: Pennsylvania

Balance of payments total: 28.953 billion

Per capita: $2,261

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No. 23: Rhode Island

No. 23: Rhode Island

Balance of payments total:$2.502 billion

Per capita: $2,362

No. 22: Florida

No. 22: Florida

Balance of payments total: 62.481 billion

Per capita: $2,977

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No. 21: North Carolina

No. 21: North Carolina

Balance of payments total: 31.229 billion

Per capita: $3,047

No. 20: Tennessee

No. 20: Tennessee

Balance of payments total: $21,224 billion

Per capita: $3,160

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No. 19: Missouri

No. 19: Missouri

Balance of payments total: $21.141 billion

Per capita: $3,458

No. 18: Idaho

No. 18: Idaho

Balance of payments total: $5.96 billion

Per capita: $3,472

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No. 17: Vermont

No. 17: Vermont

Balance of payments total: $2.53 billion

Per capita: $4,056

No. 16: Montana

No. 16: Montana

Balance of payments total: $4.229 billion

Per capita: $4,093

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No. 15: Arkansas

No. 15: Arkansas

Balance of payments total: $12.784 billion

Per capita: $4,255

No. 14: Oklahoma

No. 14: Oklahoma

Balance of payments total: $17.03 billion

Per capita: $4,332

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No. 13: Arizona

No. 13: Arizona

Balance of payments total: $30.827 billion

Per capita: $4,394

No. 12: Louisiana

No. 12: Louisiana

Balance of payments total: $21.259 billion

Per capita: $4,538

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No. 11: South Carolina

No. 11: South Carolina

Balance of payments total: $24.419 billion

Per capita: $4,860

No. 10: Kentucky

No. 10: Kentucky

Balance of payments total: $26.652 billion

Per capita: $5,984

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No. 9: Hawaii

No. 9: Hawaii

Balance of payments total: $8.788 billion

Per capita: $6,156

No. 8: Alaska

No. 8: Alaska

Balance of payments total: $4.702 billion

Per capita: $6,355

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No. 7: Maine

No. 7: Maine

Balance of payments total: $8.524 billion

Per capita: $6,381

No. 6: Maryland

No. 6: Maryland

Balance of payments total: $40.291 billion

Per capita: $6,657

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No. 5: Alabama

No. 5: Alabama

Balance of payments total: $32.498 billion

Per capita: $6,667

No. 4: Virginia

No. 4: Virginia

Balance of payments total: $64.059 billion

Per capita: $7,663

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No. 3: Mississippi

No. 3: Mississippi

Balance of payments total: 23.85 billion

Per capita: $7,902

No. 2: West Virginia

No. 2: West Virginia

Balance of payments total: $14.510 billion

Per capita: $7,991

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No. 1: New Mexico

No. 1: New Mexico

Balance of payments total: $20.096 billion

Per capita: $9,624