Managers sometimes have to go to great lengths just to find information when legislators ask for it.
It's a shame that the state has such poor tools to work with, because many of its financial practices are pretty good. Its rainy day fund is filled to the statutory maximum, and up to 2 percent of each year's revenue goes into a capital spending fund, relieving the pressure for additional debt. Bond ratings aren't the best, but they're on the way up. And Rhode Island produces a very public and honest long-term projection of revenue and expenditures. That's not happy news, but at least the state is confronting its problems.