16 States with Real Job Growth

The 16 states that have seen job growth since President Obama took office have a few things in common, reports John Merline at Investor's Business Daily (IBD). They are more likely to be business friendly, to keep taxes, spending and regulations low, and to be, on average, more red (conservative) than blue (liberal).

[S]ince the recovery started, red states have had a job growth rate of nearly twice that of blue states.
Tossup states, meanwhile, have performed worse than either red or blue states. In fact, 9 of the 11 battleground states have fewer people employed now than when Obama was sworn in.



IBD also compared state job growth with business friendliness. States that rank highest on this measure — which typically focuses on tax rates, regulations, tort reform and the size of the state government — have experienced faster job growth rates than those ranking lowest.

IBD examined state business friendliness rankings from Forbes, CNBC, the George Mason University's Mercatus Center, the Tax Foundation and Chief Executive magazine.

States that ranked in the top 10 in two or more of those lists had nearly twice the job growth rate of those showing up in the bottom 10 in two or more rankings. Top-ranked states also had an unemployment rate almost a full percentage point below the least business friendly states.

"We can take lessons we learn from states and apply them nationally," said Jason Sorens, assistant professor of political science at the State University of New York, Buffalo, and co-author of the Mercatus 50-state ranking study. "If keeping taxes, spending and regulations low and reasonable promotes growth in states, we should expect that same relationship to hold nationally."