Forbes Magazine ranks Maryland 11 on its 2006 list of the best states to do business. Not bad.
First, the good news. The state scores third in the labor force category, which analyzes work force education levels and projected population growth.
And it ranks ninth for its economic climate, which measures job and income growth, state economic output, unemployment and the presence of large companies. (We wonder how much of that projected job growth results from our taxes paying for new government positions?)
Now, for the bad. The state ranks 42 for the cost of doing business here ? a measure of the cost of labor, energy and taxes. And it ranks 31 on quality of life issues ? schools, health, crime, cost of living and the poverty rate.
It?s hard to imagine that those last two rankings would prompt many, using only private financing, to start a business, or executives considering an expansion to “choose Maryland,” as the state?s Department of Business and Economic Development Web address suggests, www.choosemaryland.com.
The material and growing presence of highly paid federal government workers in Maryland means some businesses will have to offer $106,579 (the average federal government compensation) to attract some employees and compete with our own Uncle Sam.
And as a result of military base realignments, Maryland will be the new home for thousands more highly paid federal government jobs over the next few years. While that may fuel the economy in the short term, how many entrepreneurs, the biggest economic engines, would choose to pay that kind of compensation?
Let?s all press all the candidates in the upcoming elections to be specific about their plans to improve the private business climate in this state lest we become a state where more and more work to govern fewer and fewer of us who do not.
