Financial Assistance
provided by:

6. State Assets

State Assets

Alaska has total assets of about $63 billion (Alaska Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for 2001, net of general fixed assets and general long-term debt accounts). The assets are divided among about 150 separately identified funds, all of which have been established for a specific purpose. Most state financial assets are held in a small number of these funds. These largest funds are shown in the first table.

Largest State Funds
(Start of Fiscal Year 2002)

All state funds fall into 6 categories based upon purpose. (These categories do not exactly correspond to those of the accountants.) These categories are shown in the second table.

State Financial Assets
(Start of Fiscal Year 2002)

The largest of the Trust Funds include the Permanent Fund and Constitutional Budget Reserve, the public employee retirement funds, and other trusts established to benefit particular groups.

Trusts in Billions (Start of Fiscal Year 2002)

The Public Corporations (including the University of Alaska) have combined assets of $10 billion, most of which has been put to work in the form of physical infrastructure or investments.

Public Corporations in Billions
(Start of Fiscal Year 2002)

Most of the smaller funds are really just separate accounts within the state General Fund—the state's primary operating fund—and have been established as sub-funds to keep track of money collected for particular purposes, although not obligated by law for those purposes.

The Enterprise Funds are funds for accounting for the business-type activities of some state departments that are financed primarily through user fees.

Enterprise Funds in Billions
(Start of Fiscal Year 2002)

There are 3 categories of funds set up primarily for Administrative purposes to account internally for the proceeds of bond sales, to hold debt service payments, and to account for the payment for services by one state agency to another.

There are a limited number of Special Revenue Funds that by law can only be used for specific purposes.

The number of funds is constantly changing in response to state needs. For example, when bonds are sold for a new purpose, a new fund will be established to hold the proceeds until they are expended.

Management of state financial investments is primarily the responsibility of the Treasury Division of the Department of Revenue and the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation, on behalf of each of the individual funds.

Keeping track of all these funds—Index.

Fiscal Policy Papers