Ranking America's Top States for Business, CNBC Explains How It's Done
NEW YORK (TheStreet) --America's Top States for Business rankings will be unveiled this week by CNBC. Special correspondent Scott Cohn joined CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" on Monday to detail the criteria used in assessing the grades.
CNBC began the annual rankings 10 years ago, and has provided the rankings in all sorts of economic climates. The mission, they say, is to hold states to the same standards based on criteria and categories which have remained consistent.
"Our study is not an opinion survey. We rely on input from a broad and diverse array of business and policy experts, official government sources, the CNBC Global CFO Council, and the states themselves," according to CNBC.TopStates.com. Along with this years ratings, CNBC will also provide the top performing states from the past 10 years.
"The first step is to go through every state's economic development marketing materials and see what they're talking about, and the more states are talking about something the more points it carries for them in the study. There are 10 categories that have always remained the same," Cohen explained.
The 10 categories are as follows; workforce, such as production levels and union membership. The cost of doing business in a particular state, which includes taxes, wages, and utility costs. Infrastructure, like that of roads, ports, and airports that allow easy access for trade.
Further categories, the economy, explicitly job growth and state finances. Quality of life, which includes crime rates and air quality. Technology and innovation, specifically research grants and patents. Education, from kindergarten through college and class sizes.
Finally, business friendliness, meaning the regulations and costs of living. And access to capital both venture capital and business lending.
"When we put it all together there's 2,500 points, and the states that can do the most in those various areas get to be Americas top states for business," Cohn concluded.