How does your state rank?
According to a statistical analysis by CNBC named “America’s Top States for Business 2022,” North Carolina, Washington and Virginia are among the best states in the country for business.
The analysis is not an opinion survey, but a data-driven report that measures states on 88 metrics including workforce, infrastructure, economy, cost of doing business and several others. Each state can earn a maximum of 2,500 points across all categories and then are ranked based on total points.
Additionally, some categories are weighted higher than others. For example, “workforce” and “infrastructure” are weighted more heavily than “access to capital” and “cost of living.”
Categories are measured in a variety of ways, the report says. Cost of living, for example, measures an index of costs for basic items, and access to capital is measured by state-backed capital and loan guarantee programs.
Here are the full rankings:
- North Carolina
- Washington
- Virginia
- Colorado
- Texas
- Tennessee
- Nebraska
- Utah
- Minnesota
- Georgia
- Florida
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- Indiana
- Ohio
- Michigan
- Pennsylvania
- Oregon
- Illinois
- Idaho
- Kansas
- South Dakota
- Wisconsin
- Massachusetts
- Missouri
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- Delaware
- California
- Montana
- Vermont
- Wyoming
- Alabama
- Arizona
- New Hampshire
- New York
- South Carolina
- Oklahoma
- Connecticut
- Nevada
- Arkansas
- New Jersey
- Maine
- West Virginia
- Rhode Island
- Hawaii
- New Mexico
- Louisiana
- Alaska
- Mississippi
Only one of the states in the top five (Texas) is also among the top five in total growth domestic product (GDP), according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Some of the biggest states in the country, like California, New York and Florida, are featured much lower in these business rankings.
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“Talking to CEO after CEO, workforce is the driving force for them right now,” North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper told CNBC. “They see North Carolina as a place where they can rely on our community colleges, our greatest array of public and private universities in the country to make sure they have the workforce they need.”
The report comes as the U.S. economy is dealing with surging inflation. According to June CPI data, inflation climbed to a 41-year high of 9.1% year-over-year.
See also: California to send ‘inflation relief’ checks up to $1,050 — here’s who qualifies
President Biden has called the high inflation reading “unacceptably high,” and Tom Porcelli, chief U.S. economist at RBC Capital Markets, said the Federal Reserve will likely have “zero patience” for such high inflation numbers, possibly signaling a benchmark interest rate increase in July or September.
