Area Development
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States that consistently rank at the top for business performance know what it takes to be successful — an attractive business environment (taxes, incentives, permitting), labor pool (cost, availability, education, skill level, training), and infrastructure/global access (transportation infrastructure, energy costs, intermodal capabilities, certified sites). When combined with a creative and proactive state economic development team, these advantages can seem irresistible to companies that are looking to locate or expand their operations. Companies want a quick, seamless startup. With an ever-widening global market, they need a well-integrated, modern transportation infrastructure to be competitive in these markets. Also, top-performing states know how to deal with tough times — something many CEOs still have in the back of their minds.

With that in mind, Area Development is publishing our sixth annual Top States for Doing Business survey of site consultants, ranking the states based on their number of mentions by the consultants in three overall categories and 18 subcategories, Business Environment, Labor Climate and Infrastructure and Global Access:

Top States For Doing Business 2015

  1. 1.Georgia
  2. 2.Texas
  3. 3.South Carolina
  4. 4.Tennessee
  5. 5.Alabama
  6. 5T.Florida
  7. 6.Indiana
  8. 7.North Carolina
  9. 8.Louisiana
  10. 9.Ohio
  11. 10.Kentucky
Full Analysis

Business Environment

Overall Rank

  1. 1.Texas
  2. 2.South Carolina
  3. 3.Georgia
  4. 4.Louisiana
  5. 5.Tennessee

Overall Cost of Doing Business

  1. 1.South Carolina
  2. 2.Texas
  3. 3.Georgia

Incentives Programs

  1. 1.tGeorgia
  2. 1.tSouth Carolina
  3. 2.Louisiana
  4. 3.Texas

Corporate Tax Environment

  1. 1.Texas
  2. 2.Florida
  3. 3.Nevada

Cooperative State Government

  1. 1.Georgia
  2. 1.tSouth Carolina
  3. 2.Alabama
  4. 3.Louisiana
  5. 3.tTennessee

Access to Capital & Project Funding

  1. 1.Texas
  2. 2.tCalifornia
  3. 2.tFlorida
  4. 2.tNew York
  5. 3.Georgia

Speed of Permitting

  1. 1.South Carolina
  2. 2.Georgia
  3. 3.tAlabama
  4. 3.tLouisiana
  5. 3.tTexas

Most Favorable Regulatory Environment

  1. 1.tArizona
  2. 1.tGeorgia
  3. 1.tTexas
  4. 2.Alabama
  5. 2.tSouth Carolina
  6. 3.Tennessee

Labor Climate

Overall Rank

  1. 1.Georgia
  2. 2.South Carolina
  3. 3.Texas
  4. 4.North Carolina
  5. 5.Alabama

Availability of Skilled Labor

  1. 1.Texas
  2. 2.tGeorgia
  3. 2.tIndiana
  4. 3.tCalifornia
  5. 3.tFlorida
  6. 3.tMichigan
  7. 3.tNorth Carolina

Competitive Labor Costs

  1. 1.Alabama
  2. 2.Georgia
  3. 3.tMississippi
  4. 3.tSouth Carolina

Labor Climate (Right-to-Work States)

  1. 1.Georgia
  2. 2.South Carolina
  3. 3.Texas

Labor Climate (Non-Right-to-Work States)

  1. 1.Kentucky
  2. 2.Ohio
  3. 3.tColorado
  4. 3.tMissouri

Leading Work Force Development Programs

  1. 1.Georgia
  2. 2.Louisiana
  3. 3.South Carolina
  4. 4.Alabama

Educational Resources

  1. 1.California
  2. 2.North Carolina
  3. 3.New York

Quality of Life

  1. 1.Colorado
  2. 2.Florida
  3. 3.North Carolina

Overall Infrastructure & Global Access

Overall Rank

  1. 1.Tennessee
  2. 2.Georgia
  3. 3.Texas
  4. 4.Indiana
  5. 5.Illinois

Distribution/Supply Chain Hubs

  1. 1.Georgia
  2. 2.Illinois
  3. 3.California

Highway Accessibility

  1. 1.Indiana
  2. 2.Ohio
  3. 3.Tennessee

Rail Accessibility

  1. 1.Illinois
  2. 2.Texas
  3. 3.Georgia

Certified Sites/Shovel-Ready Program

  1. 1.Tennessee
  2. 2.South Carolina
  3. 3.Georgia

Competitive Utility Rates

  1. 1.Tennessee
  2. 2.Georgia
  3. 3.

Energy Reliability / Smart Grid Deployment

  1. 1.Texas
  2. 2.tNorth Carolina
  3. 2.tTennessee
  4. 3.Georgia

Water Outlook (Availability & Cost)

  1. 1.Michigan
  2. 2.Ohio
  3. 3.Wisconsin