Utah has kept alive its streak of having the nation’s top economic outlook in an annual competitiveness study.
The ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council)-Laffer State Economic Competitive Index, also known as the “Rich States, Poor States” report, gave Utah the highest economic outlook ranking among states. It’s a position Utah has held every year since at least 2008.
The outlook is based on the state’s equal-weighted average in 15 state policy variables, each of which is influenced directly by state lawmakers through the legislative process, the report says. “Generally speaking, states that spend less — especially on income transfer programs, and states that tax less, particularly on productive activities such as working or investing — experience higher growth rates than states that tax and spend more.
Utah was ranked No. 4 among states for economic performance, which is based on the state’s performance (equal-weighted average) in three performance variables that are highly influenced by state policy. Utah was third-ranked in state gross domestic product and in non-farm payroll employment, and No. 14 in absolute domestic migration. The rankings are based on figures from 2005-15, except for absolute domestic migration, which is 2006-2015.
Utah trailed only Texas, North Dakota and Washington for economic performance.
