About DebtAtlas
An accountability tool designed to make public debt visible to the people who ultimately bear it.
Why DebtAtlas Exists
Debt reporting today is fragmented across different jurisdictions and financial frameworks. Federal debt is reported at the national level, state debt by individual state budget offices, and local debt scattered across thousands of municipal issuers. This fragmentation hides the collective impact of government borrowing on individuals across the United States.
DebtAtlas breaks these silos by consolidating federal, state, and local liabilities into a single per-capita burden — letting you see the complete fiscal picture behind every taxpayer.
What DebtAtlas Measures
Federal Layer
Total national gross debt distributed per resident. This baseline is equal across all states — every American, regardless of where they live, shares the same federal liability.
State Layer
State-issued long-term debt per resident. This reflects the structural debt of individual state governments for infrastructure, public works, and budgetary operations.
Municipal / Local Layer
Aggregated local government debt per resident, including county governments, independent school districts, and special-purpose transit and utility authorities.
Accountability Through Transparency
DebtAtlas makes it easier to compare how different states and local jurisdictions manage debt, without masking the national context. By converting all layers to a per-capita metric, we strip away the bias caused by state population size — enabling a direct, apples-to-apples comparison of fiscal responsibility.
This tool is intended to support more informed public debate, stronger fiscal oversight, and clearer accountability for elected officials and financial stewards.
How to Use the Dashboard
- 1The stats bar at the top shows national aggregates — total federal debt and average per-capita figures across all layers.
- 2Use the layer toggle to switch between viewing Combined debt or isolating Federal, State, or Municipal layers.
- 3The choropleth map colors each state by its per-capita burden — darker shades mean higher debt intensity within each category.
- 4Hover over any state for a quick breakdown tooltip. Click to pin the detail panel on the right.
- 5Activate Historical Timeline mode from the controls bar to move through debt history from 1940 to the present. Use Play to animate the progression automatically.
Contact
Questions, feedback, data corrections, feature requests, or partnership inquiries are welcome.
✉sobofirm@gmail.com