Utah On Top Again
– By Howard Sierer –
The beat goes on. Utah and a number of its leading cities, including two here in Southern Utah, have been rated best in the nation in economic performance. Adding to that, the state’s response to the COVID pandemic is also rated as best in the nation.
Start with our economic performance. Utah was ranked as having the best state economic outlook for the 15th constitutive year by the ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index. The index is based on 15 state policy variables established or influenced by state lawmakers. Utah is a well-governed state.
Our best-in-the-nation economic environment results in a number of our cities being ranked at or near the top in the country.
Provo-Orem, for the second consecutive year, has demonstrated the best economic performance among larger cities, according to the 2022 Milken Institute Best-Performing Cities Index. Having become an established hub for technology startups, Provo-Orem maintained its top ranking with the highest levels of employment growth and wage growth over the last five years. The 2022 rankings also include housing affordability and broadband access metrics that were introduced the previous year.
Logan moved from No. 2 in 2021 into the top spot in the Milken index among small cities in 2022. Logan is home to several high-tech medical manufacturing industries including pharmaceuticals and medical equipment. St. George is No. 2 in Milken’s 2022 rankings, moving up from No. 4 last year. Milken notes that these top-tier rankings mark the State of Utah’s continued success at creating jobs and raising wages.
Washington City, immediately east of St. George, was first nationwide in WalletHub’s ranking of best small cities to start a business. St. George was second and Cedar City was fourth. WalletHub compared the business-friendliness of more than 1,300 small-sized cities. Its set of 18 key metrics ranges from average growth in a number of small businesses to labor costs to investor access.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Salt Lake City had the hottest job market in the country in 2021. The Journal ranks Salt Lake City No. 4 this year, no mean feat when job growth has accelerated across the nation.
Utah’s economic recognition is due in no small part to our state government’s measured and effective response to the COVID pandemic. We were ranked first in the nation with an A+ grade by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
The NBER compared COVID outcomes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia based on three variables: the economy, education, and mortality. Utah ranked first, well ahead of runners up Nebraska and Vermont, scoring well across all three of the study’s categories: fourth on the economy, fifth in education (as measured by lost days in school), and eighth in Covid mortality adjusted for a state population’s age and the prevalence of obesity and diabetes.
The report shows that the severe lockdowns imposed in some states were maintained far too long and needlessly punished their citizens: state economic output shrank significantly and unemployment spiked yet their health outcomes were no better than states which minimized lockdowns and reopened schools.
The report’s bottom six states and all but two of the bottom 15 states plus D.C. were governed by Democrats who imposed the most stringent lockdowns and were among the last to reopen schools.
These 13 bottom dwellers have something else in common: Democratic office holders in these states are beholden to teachers’ unions which are major donors to their election campaigns. Bowing to union demands and ignoring medical science, eight of these 13 states ranked from 41st to 51st for in-person school attendance and only one ranked higher than 32nd.
Our federal form of government proved itself yet again, allowing the nation to compare different approaches to a common challenge. Utah’s low taxes and restrained regulatory regime paid off for its citizens, allowing them plentiful, good jobs to go along with our outdoor wonderland. Our state government respects personal freedom and most of us respond with responsible choices that fit our circumstances.
The first two lines of our state song say it all: “Utah! People working together. Utah! What a great place to be.”
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