The Utah Legislature has finished its 2008 session, and this morning -- as on many a "morning after" -- on Capitol Hill there may be messes to be cleaned up and regrettable incidents to apologize for.

In the aftermath of a busy session, with the Legislature's flaws on full display, some Utahns may be wondering how the state's government became one of three recently rated as most effective on a report card issued by the Pew Center for the States. Along with Virginia and Washington, Utah garnered an "A-minus" grade.

The thought occurs: Was the Pew Center grading on the curve? And if so, how bad were the other states? According to another recent report, they're pretty bad.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a Washington, D.C., think tank, said that at least 25 states face budget shortfalls in fiscal 2009. The worst is California. Some estimates put the red ink looming there at $16 billion, 15 percent of its annual budget.

On a percentage basis, Arizona's $1.7 billion estimated deficit is even bigger. Nevada will likely be $565 million short.

Virginia, also an A-minus state in Pew Center's report card, projects a deficit of $1.2 billion. Ditto for Massachusetts. Nearly $5 billion in red ink is expected in New York's books.

Sometimes mere numbers don't convey how bad things are. Illinois confronts a $1.8 billion budget shortfall for the coming year. But because of past deficits, state comptroller Dan Hynes reported, Illinois already doesn't have enough cash on hand to pay all the bills that come in on any one day.

The shortfall could reach $3.5 billion in New Jersey. Gov. Jon Corzine, until now a champion of big government, has proposed slashing 3,000 jobs, eliminating three departments and reducing services to hospitals and colleges.

In addition to the 25 states that show deficits in 2009, at least three states admit that 2010 will bring red ink. And other states haven't released their figures. We'd bet that some of them, like students who haven't turned in assignments on time, will have bad news once they finally come clean.

Compare that to Utah, which is projecting a budget surplus of more than $600 million. There are of course other statistics for assessing a state, but the budget's bottom line is a revealing one. For one thing, that metric is clear. It's hard to fudge. In all, it sums up perhaps better than anything how well a government sets its priorities and manages its resources.

This is not to indulge in schadenfreude. It is simply to point out that, in comparison to many of its peers, Utah's government seems to be performing well.

On the other hand, we don't want our elected officials to get swelled heads. Apparently the competition wasn't too tough. More than half the states can't even accomplish the basic task of balancing a budget. Utah's "A-minus" might be considered grade inflation, considering the rampant incompetence displayed at many statehouses across the nation.

One way to evaluate the Legislature's performance is according to Thomas Paine's maxim: "That government is best which governs least." By that standard, this session represents one of the greatest government achievements in history because the Legislature did very little.

Consider the big topics going in. It passed an immigration bill that only takes effect in July 2009, and could be changed or dropped by then. Health care is still being studied. On education, as of this writing, we don't see any major moves of any kind. On lesser measures, we can't think of anything the legislators or governor did that was brilliant or catastrophic. We suppose Utahns should be grateful our elected leaders followed the Hippocratic Oath and at least did no major harm.

But it's no time for complacency. We hope Utah government can preserve its reputation for efficiency, yet improve education, build highways, protect the environment, tend the economy, help provide health insurance and deal with illegal immigration. It's a tall order. But that's what needs to be done to earn a genuine A-plus on any curve.