2012 OVERALL RANKINGS
- Top Five
- 1. Texas
- 2. Utah
- 3. Viginia
- 4. North Carolina
- 5. North Dakota
- Bottom Five
- 50. Rhode Island
- 49. Hawaii
- 48. West Virginia
- 47. Alaska
- 46. Mississippi
America's Top States For Business 2012
2012 Results
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The Lone Star State is tops again, displacing Virginia, which didn't even finish second this year. And who's last? Rhode Island.
Featured Stories
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Utah moved up six spots to finish second in CNBC's sixth annual study, thanks to high rankings in the categories of workforce, transportation and the cost of doing business.
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The three-time winner of the study suffered from steep declines in the individual categories of transportation and the cost of doing business.
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The state, which actually slid from third in 2011, still ranked high in several key categories, such as workforce, technology and transportation.
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The state, which tied for 13th in 2011, scored high in four categories: economy, workforce, business friendliness and quality of life.
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We score all the states on 51 measures of competitiveness and 10 categories, from the cost of doing business to technology and innovation.
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The Romney campaign is touting Mitt Romney's “record of success” as governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 as a reason to elect him president, but CNBC's Top States for Business tells a more nuanced story about his record.
Commentary
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Virginia is for big companies and its best talent spoiled by long-term government contracts., while Massachusetts' Cambridge is now the hottest place for start-ups in the country.
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Montana landed right in the middle of the pack in CNBC’s “America’s Top States for Business” at #24. Here’s why: Montana is both the best of states and the worst of states for doing business.
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In the new economy, remote access and quality of life will be king, and for that, Florida is a very unique option. Where else in the country can you find all that Florida has to offer — climate, ocean, airports, hotels, housing, healthcare and infrastructure
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Wisconsin has implemented long-term reforms to ensure the delivery of vital services, and invested in things like infrastructure, technology and education, says Gov. Scott Walker, but business needs more measures to create stability and drive growth.
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There were a number of reasons we left Ohio, but the two biggest were that hiring was difficult and the taxes were absurdly high, says Clint Greenleaf, CEO of Greenleaf Book Group and CNBC-YPO Chief Executive Network Member
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Oklahoma is earning national recognition through our efforts to enact pro-business policies that have created an environment friendly to job creation, says Governor Mary Fallin.
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Maryland routinely ranks behind Virginia and North Carolina in CNBC's "Top States for Business" study because of a poor showing in these two areas, says Larry Hogan, chairman of Change Maryland.
Past Winners
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CNBC ranks America's Top States for Business in 2012. See which state took the number one spot.
Top States Correspondent
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Senior Correspondent Cohn leads CNBC's investigative unit and also appears on "NBC Nightly News," "Today," and MSNBC.
Slideshows
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Overall payroll growth remains subpar and disappointing but these states, which include a few surprises, are showing healthy and diverse growth.
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Cost of living may not be among the top criteria for a business, but it can be a big consideration for employees. Look at the cost of a variety of items in the nation's 10 most expensive states.
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Hawaii’s tropical and beautiful, but some of the nation’s coldest states — including the best one in CNBC’s category – make the top in our study.
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As part of our annual study, America’s Top States for Business, we grade states on several criteria in this important category of Technology & Innovation.
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Curious about where your state Governor lives? On this years’ list, we have homes ranging from mansions to relatively modest.