Saddled with growing regulation, a lazy economy and some of the highest taxes in the industrialized world, the United States squats in 12th place in a new study of worldwide economic freedom, way behind the No. 1 pick: China’s Hong Kong.
In the latest Heritage Foundation 2015 Index of Economic Freedom, the U.S. appears stuck behind Canada, Ireland and even Estonia, though a few of the categories studied in the 21st annual index showed some signs of life.
“The United States’ economic freedom score is 76.2, making its economy the 12th freest in the 2015 Index. Its score is 0.7 point higher than last year, with modest gains in six of the 10 economic freedoms, including control of government spending, outweighing a slight decline in business freedom,” said the report.
“Although the precipitous downward spiral in U.S. economic freedom since 2008 has come to a halt in the 2015 Index, a 1.6-point decline in overall economic freedom over the past five years reflects broad-based deteriorations in key policy areas, particularly those related to upholding the rule of law and limited government,” added the highly-detailed report.
Jim DeMint, president of Heritage, said in his preface, “In the United States, economic freedom has not advanced in recent years. We are performing far below potential as a result.”
Heritage plans to release the report at a conference today featuring a speech by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan. It is scheduled to be live-streamed.
Hong Kong gets the top slot generally because it is a wide open free-trade zone and one of China’s economic engines. It also doesn’t suffer from the type of regulatory and tax burdens the U.S. faces.
“Hong Kong, a global free port and financial hub, continues to thrive on the free flow of goods, services, and capital. As the economic and financial gateway to China, and with an efficient regulatory framework, low and simple taxation, and sophisticated capital markets, the territory continues to offer the most convenient platform for international companies doing business on the mainland. An impressive level of resilience has enabled it to navigate global economic swings and domestic shocks,” said the report.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
