Fiscal and economic data from all 50 states shows that 15 states had a budget surplus as they headed into the current fiscal year, according to a yearlong review by the Associated Press.

While other states, such as Washington, where the governor is considering a plan to eliminate funding for school transportation, struggle to compensate for staggering budget shortfalls, some of these 15 states are having difficulty deciding on what to do with excess funds. 

Lawmakers in Alaska had to hold a special session because they couldn’t agree on what to do with the state’s estimated $260 million surplus. Last fiscal year, the state brought in $1.9 billion more than expected. Experts say the resource-rich state has high oil prices to thank for the surplus.

West Virginia, Wyoming and North Dakota, are also enjoying bountiful reserves, reports the Associated Press. Other states including Massachusetts, South Carolina and Virginia, are enjoying modest surpluses after combining increases in tax revenues with tight spending controls.

Unemployment in many of the states running surpluses has been well below the national average of 9.1 percent.

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