Twelve states, including Hawaii, have negative outlooks from at least one of the three major credit-rating companies after falling tax revenue led elected officials to drain reserves, defer pension payments and boost borrowing, according Bloomberg News Service.

The reduced assessments, a reversal from a year ago, came after states took budget-balancing actions that the rating firms said were stopgap measures, not permanent fixes. A negative outlook might lead to a downgrade if conditions don’t improve.
Hawaii, along with Nevada and Minnesota, have earned negative outlooks from Fitch Ratings. Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s Investors Service has given nine states negative ratings.
The U.S. recession that began in December 2007 depressed tax collections as states faced higher unemployment, reduced consumer spending and a $7 trillion drop in the value of U.S. equities. State tax revenue plunged by 11.7 percent during the first quarter of this year, the sharpest decline in at least 50 years, Albany, New York-based Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government reported in July.