I did not intend the quotation marks as an insult, but rather a way of trying to elicit further information (of which I actually made inquiry in my first response).
My point was (and is) that no one can tell you whether or not the $55,000 is taxable, for a fact, unless you provide further details. Unless there are extremely unusual circumstances, however, receiving/recovering the funds from the state (if they were inherited, lost/unclaimed, or otherwise owned by you) would generally not be a taxable event.
