ONE POSSIBLE REASON CARIBOU BOOKED

The fiscal good times in Alaska are coming to an end and that means her job as governor would be more difficult and perhaps also tarnish her image as a fiscal conservative.

After California: Which States Are in the Most Peril?
By Barbara Kiviat Wednesday, Jul. 08, 2009
TIME Magazine

Revenues — from income, sales and property taxes — continue to fall. True, states have already plowed through a lot of tough decisions to close the $102 billion shortfall they collectively faced during the last budget cycle. But already it looks like this year's gap will be $121 billion, according to a report from the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Two of the worst-off states by that count are Alaska and Nevada. Each of them will need to spend 30% more than what state tax officers think they'll be collecting. And neither has a state income tax, relying on oil and tourism taxes, respectively, for most of their revenues.