MEMPHIS, TN (abc24.com) - How honest are the people running your state? A new report shows Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee still have work to do when it comes to getting rid of corruption.
The Center for Public Integrity asked reporters from each state to answer more than 300 questions in 14 categories. The questions touched on everything from how their states handle internal auditing to how they manage state pension funds.
Tennessee came in at number 8 out of 50 states with a C grade and 76 score. Out of 14 categories Tennessee received an A in just one, Internal Auditing.
Caitlin Ginley with the Center for Public Integrity told abc24.com, "There were some real strong auditing procedures and a state auditor conducted the job transparently and made information available to the public."
However, Tennessee received an F in redistricting. Ginley said they didn't look at the process but how transparent Tennessee made that process. She said they looked at "were there hearings held on redistricting, could the public come and participate and was their input taken seriously or was it a process that occurred behind closed doors."
Mississippi got a C plus with a 79 score. The Magnolia state got A's in three categories; State Insurance Commissions, Internal Auditing and Redistricting. Ginley said, "Unlike Tennessee they made their process more open to the public, they held hearings throughout the state and had people participate in the process."
Arkansas didn't rank too well, it got a D plus with a 68 score. It got an F in Public Access to Information and an F in Pension Fund Management.
No state received an overall A. New Jersey was the highest scoring state with a B plus. Georgia received the lowest score.
