The Tax Foundation released the much-anticipated third edition of our State Business Tax Climate Index this morning, which ranks the “business-friendliness” of the 50 state tax systems. Here’s the bottom line: Major Components of the State Business Tax Climate Index, 2006 State Overall Rank Business Tax Index Rank Individual Income Tax Index Rank Sales and Gross Receipts Tax Index Rank Unemploy-ment Insurance Tax Index Rank Wealth Index Rank Alabama 14 14 17 11 4 6 Alaska 3 48 4 1 43 18 Arizona 25 29 20 40 12 12 Arkansas 41 44 32 37 41 13 California 40 39 47 38 20 7 Colorado 12 6 14 26 21 14 Connecticut 39 16 19 33 26 50 Delaware 8 25 26 3 11 10 Florida 4 13 4 20 1 16 Georgia 21 8 27 7 32 27 Hawaii 33 26 44 43 22 3 Idaho 24 21 37 17 46 2 Illinois 23 15 13 41 37 44 Indiana 11 20 10 14 7 19 Iowa 42 46 45 13 28 29 Kansas 34 45 23 28 15 33 Kentucky 44 40 30 23 48 30 Louisiana 36 34 22 49 9 28 Maine 45 47 38 10 42 39 Maryland 22 7 39 8 17 37 Massachusetts 27 36 15 9 49 41 Michigan 26 49 11 32 40 20 Minnesota 38 41 36 34 35 15 Mississippi 29 33 16 46 2 26 Missouri 20 4 25 29 8 17 Montana 9 17 21 5 24 23 Nebraska 43 42 34 36 14 42 Nevada 5 1 7 47 38 11 New Hampshire 6 38 8 2 44 31 New Jersey 49 50 46 27 27 46 New Mexico 28 31 24 48 18 1 New York 50 30 50 39 47 43 North Carolina 37 22 43 35 5 40 North Dakota 31 35 42 18 36 4 Ohio 47 37 48 45 13 48 Oklahoma 17 8 28 15 3 21 Oregon 10 24 33 4 30 8 Pennsylvania 16 32 12 19 16 45 Rhode Island 48 27 40 30 50 49 South Carolina 30 12 29 12 45 32 South Dakota 2 1 1 42 31 9 Tennessee 15 11 9 44 33 38 Texas 7 18 4 21 6 34 Utah 18 5 31 24 23 5 Vermont 46 43 49 16 10 47 Virginia 19 8 18 6 25 36 Washington 13 19 2 50 39 24 West Virginia 35 28 41 31 34 22 Wisconsin 32 23 35 25 29 25 Wyoming 1 1 2 22 19 35 Note: Rankings do not average across to total. States without a given tax rank equally as number 1. Click here for the full study. Click here for a response to recent criticisms of the Index.
