美國最腐敗的十個州調查 越腐敗越愛上馬大項目

When we think of government corruption (as one tends to do), our biased minds often gravitate to thoughts of military juntas and third world governments. But, of course, corruption is everywhere, in one form or another. And it’s costing U.S. citizens big time.

提到政府腐敗，我們常常傾向於帶有偏見地認爲，只有軍事政府和第三世界國家的政府纔會腐敗。但毫無疑問，腐敗無處不在，只是形式各不相同。腐敗同樣給美國公民造成了巨大的浪費。

A new study from researchers at the University of Hong Kong and the University of Indiana estimates that corruption on the state level is costing Americans in the 10 most corrupt states an average of $1,308 per year, or 5.2% of those states’ average expenditures per year.

香港大學（University of Hong Kong）與印第安納大學（University of Indiana）的研究人員最近進行的一項研究結果顯示，在美國最腐敗的十個州，腐敗給美國人造成的浪費是平均每人每年1,308美元，約佔各州每人每年平均支出的5.2%。

The researchers studied more than 25,000 convictions of public officials for violation of federal corruption laws between 1976 and 2008 as well as patterns in state spending to develop a corruption index that estimates the most and least corrupt states in the union. Based on this method, the the most corrupt states are:

研究人員調查了1976年至2008年期間超過25,000起公務人員違反聯邦腐敗法律的案件，以及各州財政支出的方式，據此研究出一個腐敗指數，用來評估美國最腐敗和最不腐敗的州。根據這個方法，最腐敗的各州分別是：

1. Mississippi

1. 密西西比州

2. Louisiana

2. 路易斯安那州

3. Tennessee

3. 田納西州

4. Illinois

4. 伊利諾伊州

5. Pennsylvania

5. 賓夕法尼亞州

6. Alabama

6. 阿拉巴馬州

7. Alaska

7. 阿拉斯加州

8. South Dakota

8. 南達科他州

9. Kentucky

9. 肯塔基州

10. Florida

10. 佛羅里達州

That these places landed on the list isn’t exactly surprising. Illinois, which has gain notoriety for its high-profile corruption cases in recent years, is paired with states like Mississippi and Louisiana, which are some of the least economically developed in the country. The researchers also found that for 9 out of the 10 of the most corrupt states, overall state spending was higher than in less corrupt states (South Dakota was the only exception). Attacking corruption, the researchers argue, could be a good way to bring down state spending without hurting services that people need.

事實上，這些州榜上有名並不令人意外。近幾年，伊利諾伊州備受矚目的腐敗案件已經讓它臭名遠揚。其他各州，比如密西西比州與路易斯安那州，都是美國經濟最落後的地區。此外，研究人員還發現，在最腐敗的10個州中，有9個州的總體開支高於其他州（南達科他州是唯一的例外）。研究人員認爲，打擊腐敗將是降低州政府開支的有效方法，而且不會影響公民需要的服務。

Researchers also found that spending in these states was different than their less corrupt counterparts. According to the report, “states with higher levels of corruption are likely to favor construction, salaries, borrowing, correction, and police protection at the expense of social sectors such as education, health and hospitals.”

研究人員還發現，上榜各州的開支與其他州相比存在較大差異。報告稱：“腐敗較爲嚴重的各州更有可能支持建築、工資、借貸、服刑人員改造和警察保護，而犧牲教育、健康與醫院等社會部門的支出。”

The paper explains that construction spending, especially on big infrastructure projects, is particularly susceptible to corruption because the quality of large, nonstandard projects are difficult for the public to gauge, while the industry is dominated by a few monopolistic firms. Corrupt states also tend to, for obvious reasons, simply have more and better paid public servants, including police and correctional officers. The researchers argue that the need for correctional officers is greater in corrupt places too because “the overall extent of corruption will be higher in states with higher numbers of convictions of public officials.”

文件解釋稱，建築支出，特別是大型基礎設施項目的開支，尤其容易滋生腐敗，因爲對於大型非標準項目，公衆很難評估它們的價值，而建築行業又被多家壟斷性企業控制。此外，由於顯而易見的理由，腐敗更爲嚴重的各州往往存在有更多、待遇更好的公務員，包括警察和獄警。研究人員認爲，腐敗地區對獄警的需求更大，因爲“公務員被判有罪人數越多的州，總體腐敗程度越嚴重。”

Of course, it’s not all bad news, as the study also found the least corrupt states too. Citizens of these states–Oregon, Washington, Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, Vermont, Utah, New Hampshire, Colorado, and Kansas–can take solace in the fact that they’re not getting ripped off as badly as the rest of us.

當然，報告中並非全是壞消息，因爲研究還發現了腐敗程度最低的州，分別是俄勒岡州、華盛頓州、明尼蘇達州、內布拉斯加州、愛荷華州、佛蒙特州、猶他州、新罕布什爾州、科羅拉多州和堪薩斯州。這些州的公民可以感到一絲安慰，因爲他們被盤剝的程度要低於其他美國人。