Massachusetts tumbled to the middle of the pack in CNBC’s latest ranking of best states for business, falling from sixth to 28th in the survey published on Tuesday marking the “biggest decline” of any of the 50 contenders.
Governor Deval Patrick has often pointed to the state’s relatively high ranking in the survey as proof of positive business conditions here.
In a statement Tuesday, Patrick took a positive stance, saying the state in recent years has cut corporate taxes and “burdensome regulations,” reduced health care and energy costs and continued “record investments” in education, innovation and infrastructure.
“Our growth strategy consistently gets results – we’ve seen sixth straight months of job growth and our unemployment rate is well below the nation’s as well as many of the states listed in CNBC’s top ten,” Patrick said.
The state ranked 49th in cost of doing business, down from 41st.
Other factors included a lagging economy, which went from 15th to 21st, and infrastructure, which reflected the state’s biggest decline from 29th to 45th.
House Minority Leader Brad Jones wasn’t as optimistic as Patrick, saying in a statement Tuesday, “As if the news couldn’t get any worse for Massachusetts residents, CNBC ranks the Commonwealth 49th in cost of business, ahead of only Hawaii. These latest numbers are egregious. The residents of Massachusetts deserve better.”
