CNBC's Senior Correspondent Scott Cohn Revealed America's Top Five States for Business Today on CNBC & CNBC.com
ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., June 24, 2014—CNBC, First in Business Worldwide, today unveiled the results of its eighth annual list of America's Top States for Business with Georgia taking top honors. Georgia scored 1,659 out of 2,500 points.
CNBC Senior Correspondent Scott Cohn reported today live from Stone Mountain, GA and counted down the top five states throughout CNBC's Business Day programming and on CNBC.com. Coverage of America's Top States for Business will continue on-air and online through Wednesday, June 25th.
"Georgia has always been a strong performer in our rankings with its well-developed infrastructure and top notch workforce," said Cohn, who created the annual study and compiled this year's results. "For 2014, a rebounding economy propels Georgia to the top, though the state still has work to do on education and quality of life."
CNBC.com offers a detailed analysis of how Georgia claimed the top spot including a complete economic snapshot (employment, budget, tax and housing data). The rankings for all 50 states are available at topstates.cnbc.com. In addition, the site also has exclusive stories and slideshows including State Winners and Losers in the Jobs War, Top States for Innovation, and Comeback States, among others.
Follow us on Twitter @CNBC and take part in the social conversation surrounding CNBC's top states coverage using hashtag #TopStates.
To determine the rankings for America's Top States for Business, each state was scored—using publicly available data—on 56 different measures of competitiveness. The initial metrics were developed in cooperation with business groups including The National Association of Manufacturers and The Council on Competitiveness. The formula is regularly updated with input from economic development experts, the states themselves, and the CNBC Global CFO Council. States received points based on their rankings in each metric, which were then separated into ten broad categories. The categories are weighted based on how frequently they are cited as selling points in state economic development marketing materials. That way, CNBC grades the states on the criteria they use to sell themselves.
America's Top 5 States for Business:
1. Georgia (Highest Rank - #1 in Infrastructure and Workforce; Lowest Rank - #32 in Quality of Life & Education)
2. Texas (Highest Rank - #1 in Economy and Infrastructure; Lowest Rank - #37 in Quality of Life)
3. Utah (Highest Rank - #1 in Access to Capital; Lowest Rank - #46 in Education)
4. Nebraska (Highest Rank - #3 in Business Friendliness; Lowest Rank - #40 in Technology & Innovation)
5. North Carolina (Highest Rank - #4 in Economy & Workforce; Lowest Rank - #34 in Quality of Life)
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