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(Contributed photo/Wallet Hub)

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from transfers from the federal government. In Alabama - and in many other Republican-heavy states - that amount is even higher.

A recent study by the personal finance network Wallet Hub showed Alabama receives 37.02 percent of its revenue from the federal government. That's the 10th highest in the country. Also, the state receives $3.28 for every $1 it pays in federal taxes, an amount that's equal to the third highest in the country.

The Wallet Hub data also includes the percentage of federal employees in each state. Alabama ranked 38th for the number of federal employees per capita, with about 11.66 percent of the state's workforce employed by the federal government.

Using those factors, Alabama was ranked as the third most dependent state in the nation, behind only New Mexico and Mississippi, which tied for the first position. Other states receiving a high portion of federal dollars are Louisiana, Maine, Montana, Tennessee and West Virginia. Of those, only Maine voters opted for President Barack Obama in the 2012 presidential election.

On the other end of the federal aid spectrum are Delaware, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey and Connecticut. All of those states voted for President Obama in 2012.

Republican states more dependent on federal aid

Using the data – federal funding as a percent of state revenue, return on taxes paid to the federal government and number of federal employees per capita – WalletHub said Republican-voting states are "altogether more reliant on federal funding than Blue (Democratic) states."

That federal funding often translates to lower state tax rates.

"The more dependent a state is on the federal government, the less likely it is to charge high tax rates," WalletHub said.