Capitalization of "state"

Issue came up at work regarding proper capitalization of the word "state" when referring to geographic areas. References seemed to differ also. General agreement for lower case when discussing "states" in general such as "Many states have crime issues."
Here's where the trouble started. In a report, we gave a list of states and monies they received from the federal / Federal (another issue) government. From that point on, when we talk about the work performed by the "states / States," should it be capitalized because we're now talking about specific states?
Next example. In a section of the report with a heading "State of Alabama," should be capitalize state whenever we say something like "The state's / State's report included . . ."?
Most cited reference was
http://writing911.com/writing/good-writing-tips/writing-style/capitalization-rules-eight-words-you-usually-shouldnt-capitalize.html, which itself cited three prominent references. But others say to capitalize state when used in the last two examples above.
Thanks.