State Drops in Forbes’s Best States List

12.27.2012
Economy

Forbes just released its “Best States for Business” rankings for 2012 and Connecticut actually slipped four places this year, dropping to #39 from #35 in 2011.
The national publication says it bases its rankings on:

“Six vital factors for businesses: costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, current economic climate, growth prospects and quality of life. [Forbes] weighed 35 points of data to determine the ranks in the six main areas. Business costs, which include labor, energy and taxes, are weighted the most heavily.”

We talk about making Connecticut more competitive for jobs and the kinds of business investments that will lead to even more jobs and economic growth.
As Forbes says, costs—labor, energy, healthcare, regulatory, taxes–are huge factors and weigh “most heavily” in their computations. (We ranked #47 in the U.S. for business costs.)
But there’s more to it.
Forbes presents a whole package of factors. And so does CNBC’s “Top States for Business” ranking.
In fact, CNBC goes deeper with its ratings categories including infrastructure, business friendliness, economy, and another kind of cost—cost of living.
Here’s our Forbes report card; and CNBC’s.
Obviously, we have a lot of work to do to make Connecticut stronger competitively.
In two weeks, the 2013 session of the General Assembly will begin its work, and a top priority will be creating a new state budget that balances—without tax or fee increases, or more regulatory hurdles, and with policy changes that can help make state government work better at less cost.
Why is that important? Because our state’s fiscal health has a major impact on Connecticut’s economic health and business confidence. And with lawmakers facing a $2 billion budget deficit, it’s hard to cement that confidence.
We’ll soon present our 2013 agenda for Connecticut. It offers what we believe Connecticut has to do to become stronger and more competitive– a state that’s heading up in national rankings like CNBC’s and Forbes’s.
Our agenda covers lots of factors, including some that Connecticut is already making progress on, that will all add up to defining how competitive we are as a state.

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CBIA IS FIGHTING TO MAKE CONNECTICUT A TOP STATE FOR BUSINESS, JOBS, AND ECONOMIC GROWTH. A BETTER BUSINESS CLIMATE MEANS A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR EVERYONE.