From the NCPA:
The recovery from the recent recession has been very sluggish, and the nation’s governors have struggled with the resulting budget deficits, unemployment and other economic problems in their states. Many reform-minded governors elected in 2010 have championed tax reforms and spending restraint to get their states back on track. Other governors have expanded government with old-fashioned tax-and-spend policies, says Chris Edwards, director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute.
That is the backdrop to the Cato Institute’s 11th biennial fiscal report card on the governors, which examines state budget actions since 2010. It uses statistical data to grade the governors on their taxing and spending records — governors who have cut taxes and spending the most receive the highest grades, while those who have increased taxes and spending the most receive the lowest grades…
Five governors were awarded an “F”:
- Pat Quinn of Illinois.
- Dan Malloy of Connecticut.
- Mark Dayton of Minnesota.
- Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii.
- Chris Gregoire of Washington.
