34. Alabama

The Heart of Dixie offers a low cost of doing business and a very affordable cost of living. But poor health hurts the state’s quality of life, and the state ranks poorly in education.

Published 4:16 PM ET Tue, 24 June 2014 Updated 3:18 PM ET Wed, 2 July 2014 CNBC.com

Category	Score	2014 Rank	2013 Rank
Cost of Doing Business	342	4 (Tie)	6
Workforce	158	20 (Tie)	25
Quality of Life	79	46	45
Infrastructure & Transportation	203	21 (Tie)	27
Economy	169	40	40
Education	40	47	36
Technology & Innovation	117	31	34
Business Friendliness	62	38	37
Cost of Living	44	7 (Tie)	13
Access to Capital	3	45 (Tie)	39
Overall	1217	34	33

Economic Profile

Governor: Robert Bentley, Republican

Population: 4,833,722

GDP growth: 0.8 percent

Unemployment rate (May 2014): 6.9 percent

Top corporate tax rate: 6.5 percent

Top individual income tax rate: 5 percent

Gasoline tax: 39 cents/gallon

Bond rating/outlook: Aa1/stable

Major private employer: Regions Financial Corporation

Economic profile sources: Federation of Tax Administrators, American Petroleum Institute, Moody's Investor Service, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Regions Financial Corporation

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