Louisiana has again been placed at the bottom of the list, 49th, when it comes to business-friendly states.
USA Today reported on the new rankings this week by financial news company 24/7 Wall St. which indexes 42 measures that fall into eight categories—economic conditions, business costs, state infrastructure, workforce availability and skill, quality of life, regulations, technology, and cost of living—to rank the best states for business.
Louisiana ranked above only West Virginia. However, the report says Louisiana “is a relatively inexpensive state to do business. It has the lowest electricity prices in the country and workers are paid less on average compared to workers nationwide.”
Relevant data was sourced from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Tax Foundation.
Massachusetts was named the top business-friendly state, with a one-year GDP change of 3.1% and average earnings of $75,637. The state also saw the highest rate per capita of venture capital deals in 2018—9.6 for every 100,000 people.
By comparison, Louisiana had 0.2 venture capita deals per 100,000 people, the second-fewest in the country. Read the full report.