State Representative Mike Sparks (R–Smyrna) joined with legislative leaders today to announce that Fitch Ratings, one of the country’s top bond agencies, has officially named Tennessee the lowest debt state in the nation.

The news, which was released by Fitch earlier this week, is based on an analysis of total debt ratios in all 50 states. The calculation is measured by combining each state’s total debt and unfunded liabilities and measuring them against the state’s average individual income level.

The special report from Fitch revealed that the median level for states' combined debt measures 7.0% of 2012 personal income. Tennessee's was lowest at 1.8 percent. The nation's highest percentage was Illinois at 24.8 percent.

“There is no doubt that in Tennessee, things are moving in the right direction,” stated Representative Mike Sparks. “Through the hard work of Governor Haslam and legislative leadership, state government has been successful in coming together to attract job-creators, inspire entrepreneurs, and put Tennesseans back to work.”

Fitch plans to use the debt ratios as a factor in evaluating states’ credit ratings. Favorable ratings from Fitch and the other rating agencies means lower interest rates when the state borrows money, resulting in big savings for taxpayers across the board.

“Tennesseans can be very proud of this news. This ranking shows that Tennessee has worked hard with leaders like Representative Sparks to manage our state’s finances in a responsible manner, which has translated to more jobs and lower taxes for all Tennesseans,” said House Speaker Beth Harwell (R–Nashville).

Mike Sparks is Vice-Chairman of the House Transportation Committee. He is serving his second term in the Tennessee House of Representatives and represents District 49, which includes a portion of Rutherford County.