Georgia ranks No. 1 in economic report
May 15—ATLANTA — CATO released a report titled "Entrepreneurs and Regulations: Removing State and Local Barriers to New Businesses," which compares strengths of economies in states with burdensome regulations versus those in less regulated states. Among the Top 10 States for the lowest regulatory barriers are Georgia, South Dakota, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Indiana, Wyoming, Utah and Ohio. Georgia is ranked No. 1.
"As the top state for doing business for the past eight years — thanks to conservative leadership in the governor's office and the General Assembly — it is no surprise that Georgia's business environment continues to receive top marks," Gov. Brian Kemp said in announcing the news. "This report highlights Georgia's high ranking in ease of starting a business, labor and hiring laws, and licensing laws. Job creation and economic development in Georgia have remained strong throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are building on that momentum thanks to a world-class business environment that encourages investment, innovation and business creation."
CATO's "Entrepreneurs and Regulations: Removing State and Local Barriers to New Businesses" report results reflect the rankings that states receive based on weighted scores in the following categories: small business views of regulations, occupational licensing, other entry barriers, and regulation-created costs.
For the "Small Business Views of Regulations" section, CATO created a poll with the following questions: "How difficult or easy do you think it is to start a business in your state?" "How unfriendly or friendly is your state or local government with regard to employment, labor, and hiring regulations?" and "How unfriendly or friendly is your state or local government with regard to licensing forms, requirements and fees?" This poll surveyed 5,000 respondents, and each response was graded as an F to A+ choice, which was converted to scores of 1 to 13. Below are Georgia's scores under the "Small Business Views of Regulations" category:
—Ease of Starting a Business: A+
—Labor and Hiring Laws: A+
—Licensing Laws: A+
