CNBC has an ongoing series on “Best States” — best states for business, best states to live and work in, etc. Yesterday they published here their worst states to live and work in. The headline was:
These are America’s 10 worst states to live and work in for 2023, and there’s a big surprise at the very bottom
I will do the tease but, really, not a single person at DKos is going to even lift and eyebrow. The more likely response is “Well, thank you Captain Obvious”.
The ranking was based on “how welcoming states are to workers and their families”. Well, that tells us where this is headed. They go on:
We consider multiple quality of life factors, including crime rates, environmental quality, and health care. We also look at the quality and availability of childcare, which is one of the most important factors in getting parents back into the workforce.
Casting the widest possible net for workers means not turning anyone away. So we consider inclusiveness in state laws by measuring protections against discrimination, as well as voting rights.
The headings are for their full methodology is:
Workforce — 40% — quality of workers, availability, ability to attract
Infrastructure — 15.6% — investment and quality of transport, broadband throughout state, water and wastewater systems quality, power grid and renewable power, and climate risk
Economy — 14.4% — state budget revenues and expenditures, real estate market, diversity in corporate economy and new business starts
Life, Health, and Inclusion (350 points) — 14% — livability, worker’s protections, childcare, reproductive rights, inclusiveness of state laws including diversity in race and lifestyle as well as voting rights
Cost of Doing Business — 11.6% — tax burden and tax incentives, real estate and utility costs
Technology and Innovation — 10.8% — patents issued, research grants, and place in the semiconductor supply businesses
Business Friendliness — 8.6% — overall regulatory burden, lawsuit, labor and liability exposure. Also looks at openness to new business areas such as crypto and cannibis
Education — 5% — state education both k-12 and colleges, support of HBCUs and community colleges
Access to Capital — 2% — ease of raising money
Cost of Living — 2% — cost of living for a worker
Now, I would argue that a number of these metrics weigh much more heavily to whether the bosses like the state as opposed to whether the state is good for workers to live in but I am going with this business favorable methodology. CNBC has ranked these states based only on the Life, Health and Inclusiveness score for this survey and got the results that no one here should be surprised by (except maybe where states fall on the list).
So, state rankings for least worst in the bottom 10 to worst:
10. Florida — Grade D — 129 of 350 points
9. Arkansas — Grade D- — 118 of 350 points
8. Tennessee — Grade D- — 115 of 350 points
7. Indiana — Grade D- — 113 of 350 points
6. Missouri — Grade F — 98 of 350 points
4. (tie) — Alabama — Grade F — 86 of 350 points
4. (tie) — South Carolina — Grade F — 86 of 350 points
3. Louisiana — Grade F — 76 of 350 points
2. Oklahoma — Grade F — 75 of 350 poiints
1. WINNER in The “Let’s Hate People” Category — TEXAS — 53 of 350 points
It is no surprise that every single state on this list has a Rethuglican government. What astounds me is that Florida ranked higher and that DeSantis hasn’t complained that he deserved to be number 1 on this list.
And to tell the difference in how this methodology shows its true colors in being business centric — Texas is #6 on the list using all metrics and Florida is #8. But Minnesota, which ranks 4th best on this inclusiveness ranking beats both of them at #5 for the complete methodology.