Welcome to State of the States 2018, an annual compendium of data that matter to global corporate location decision-makers looking for places to grow in the United States. In addition to containing updated legislative, demographic, economic and education data points, this edition includes the fourth annual installment of Rankings That Matter. This year this six-point scoreboard features a new component from the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation based on 25 indicators that measure the extent to which state economies are knowledge-based, globalized, entrepreneurial, IT-driven and innovation-oriented:

	Rank in the Tax Foundation’s 2018 State Business Tax Climate Index (Oct. 2017)
	Rank in 2016 Higher Education R&D Expenditure (Total in $000s in parentheses)
	Rank in total ACT National Career Readiness Certificates earned per capita among working-age adults, Dec. 2017 (total number in parentheses)
	Rank in 2017 State New Economy Index ranking (Information Technology & Innovation Foundation)
	Rank by Lowest Industrial Electric Power Cost (¢/kWh, EIA)
	Rank in Fiscal Condition Index (Mercatus Center at George Mason University, July 2017)

Mix and match these data points according to your own organization’s site selection priorities, and let the facts guide you toward the best location choice. 

The State of the States report was compiled, edited and designed by Mark Arend, Adam Bruns, Gary Daughters, Karen Medernach, Daniel Boyer and Richard Nenoff.

Sources: Information in these pages comes from an array of sources that includes: Standard & Poor’s (state credit ratings as of December 2017); ESRI (2017 state populations, population growths, median household incomes, and median ages); National Science Foundation; US Energy Information Administration; US Bureau of Labor Statistics; National Bureau of Economic Research; US Census Bureau; Conway Analytics’ Conway Projects Database; state chambers of commerce, economic development agencies and business/industry associations; press reports; governors’ and corporate press rooms; law firms; and legislative research services.