50-state Report: GOP-Led States Are in Best Economic Condition

50-state Report: GOP-Led States Are in Best Economic Condition
The Salt Lake City skyline taken in Salt Lake CIty, Utah, on Feb. 18, 2002. Brian Bahr/Getty Images
The Center Square
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A new report ranks all 50 states from best to worst for economic conditions, showing which states have improved, and worsened, in creating an economic climate where businesses want to invest.

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) released the state analysis, which ranks Utah as the number one state, North Carolina as second, and Arizona as third. Idaho and Oklahoma fill out the top five spots, ranking fourth and fifth, respectively.

“The proof is in the pudding,” Jonathan Williams, ALEC’s chief economist who co-authored the report, told The Center Square. “Utah was the fastest growing state in the country by population, over 18 percent population growth in the last decade. So one of the key themes that we see not just in Utah but in so many of the top ten or the top half of states is that states that get it right with policy are getting it right with migration as people continue to vote with their feet. Taxpayers are continuing to vote with their feet against high-tax states and going toward states that offer more economic opportunity and really a better quality of life and a lower cost of life.”

“We’ve been doing this long enough that there are really no accidents and no flukes,” he added.

ALEC created its rankings using 15 metrics, most of them related to state tax environment. The metrics, which are equally rated, are as follows:
  • Top Marginal Personal Income Tax Rate
  • Top Marginal Corporate Income Tax Rate
  • Personal Income Tax Progressivity (change in tax liability per $1,000 of income)
  • Property Tax Burden (per $1,000 of personal income)
  • Sales Tax Burden (per $1,000 of personal income)
  • Remaining Tax Burden (per $1,000 of personal income)
  • Estate/Inheritance Tax Levied
  • Recently Legislated Tax Changes (2020 & 2021, per $1,000 of personal income)
  • Debt Service as a Share of Tax Revenue
  • Public Employees Per 10,000 of Population (full-time equivalent)
  • State Liability System Survey (tort litigation treatment, judicial impartiality, etc.)
  • State Minimum Wage (federal floor is $7.25)
  • Average Workers’ Compensation Costs (per $100 of payroll)
  • Right-to-Work State? (option to join or support a union)
  • Number of Tax Expenditure Limits
At the bottom of the rankings is New York, the worst state by ALEC’s metrics. Vermont is ranked 49th, Minnesota is 48th, and New Jersey is 47th. Illinois comes in at 46th, and California ranks as 45th.

“This isn’t just theory,” Williams said. “These are items that we know both from an academic perspective, these policies that we track…things that we know matter just from an historical perspective but then now in the last 16 years it has been just phenomenal to look at. It’s not just a theory. It actually works in practice.”

For the most part, Republican-led states filled the better parts of the rankings while Democrat-led states fell to the bottom. The top ten states are almost entirely Republican-led, and the bottom ten states are all Democrat-led.

“The states that followed the free market formula of keeping taxes low and keeping regulations limited, empowering workers, empowering taxpayers across the board are the fastest growing states in America,” Williams said.

The full ranking of states, from best to worst by ALEC’s metrics:
  1. Utah
  2. North Carolina
  3. Arizona
  4. Idaho
  5. Oklahoma
  6. Wyoming
  7. Indiana
  8. North Dakota
  9. Florida
  10. Nevada
  11. Tennessee
  12. Georgia
  13. Texas
  14. South Dakota
  15. Arkansas
  16. Michigan
  17. Wisconsin
  18. Virginia
  19. New Hampshire
  20. Ohio
  21. South Carolina
  22. Mississippi
  23. Alaska
  24. Alabama
  25. Colorado
  26. Louisiana
  27. Kentucky
  28. West Virginia
  29. Delaware
  30. Kansas
  31. Missouri
  32. Iowa
  33. Montana
  34. Washington
  35. Pennsylvania
  36. Nebraska
  37. Massachusetts
  38. New Mexico
  39. Connecticut
  40. Rhode Island
  41. Maryland
  42. Hawaii
  43. Oregon
  44. Maine
  45. California
  46. Illinois
  47. New Jersey
  48. Minnesota
  49. Vermont
  50. New York
By Casey Harper
The Center Square
The Center Square
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The Center Square was launched in May 2019 to fulfill the need for high-quality statehouse and statewide news across the United States. The focus of our work is state- and local-level government and economic reporting. www.thecentersquare.com
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