WisBusiness: Wisconsin makes national economic honor roll

By Brian E. Clark
WisBusiness.com

For the second year in a row, Wisconsin has made the honor roll of a
national economic report card. Only five other states received the same
recognition.

The study was released today by the non-partisan, Washington, D.C.-based
Corporation for Enterprise Development, a national development
organization.

In the report, Wisconsin earned an “A” for economic performance, a “B”
for
business vitality and a “B” for development capacity.

The Economic Performance index includes measures such as earnings and
job
quality, equity and quality of life. The Business Vitality index
measures
variables such as entrepreneurial energy and the competitiveness of
existing businesses. And the Development Capacity index measures human
resources, financial resources, infrastructure, and innovation
resources.

Jerome Uher, a spokesman for the CFED, said Wisconsin has done well over
the 20-year history of the economic report card.

He emphasized that the report measures more than low taxes and
regulations
and liability laws that are favorable to businesses.

“That is a third of what we analyze,” explained Uher, who said the CFED
is
funded mainly by foundations.

“We also consider quality of life measures and investments that the
states
are making in things like schools and infrastructure,” he said.

Jim Pugh, spokesman for Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, said he is
always pleased when the Badger State gets good publicity.

“But this sounds like it is weighted more toward quality of life factors
rather than hard economics,” he said, noting that the WMC will continue
to
push for lower taxes as well as regulatory and liability reform.

In a statement, Gov. Jim Doyle said the CFED report card confirms what
that Wisconsin “is a great place to do business.

“In the study, Wisconsin earned an A for economic performance, showing
that our diverse economy is creating good jobs for hardworking families,
and our strategic economic polices are providing the business climate
necessary to fuel further economic growth,” he said.

According to the report, only Connecticut and Delaware scored A’s in all
three indices. Four other states – Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota
and
Utah – joined Wisconsin in earning all A’s and B’s.

Uher said the CFED’s report card is the most comprehensive measurement
of
the health of a state’s economy and each state’s economic development
efforts.

The study uses 67 measures to assess how the economy is performing for
citizens and businesses and how well a state is situated for its future.
The complete 2007 Development Report Card for the States, including all
67
measures and analysis of each state, is available online at
http://www.cfed.org/go/drc.

He said the study found that Wisconsin’s economy continues to work well
for its citizens. Notably, the state does a laudable job in insuring
low-income children (Wisconsin is ranked 8th in the nation) and
minimizing
the percentage of working parents living in poverty (rank of 9th in
working poor).

Also, Wisconsin’s businesses are healthy and diverse (14th in industrial
diversity, 13th in the strength of the traded sector, and 11th in
business
closings).

“Though Wisconsin’s economic picture is strong, the state posts middling
grades in most of the measures within Development Capacity.” said David
Buchholz, research director for CFED.

“Stronger investments in its human, innovation, financial, and natural
resources will only help Wisconsin to maintain its competitiveness with
other states,” he said.

The Development Report Card for the States was launched in 1987 to
provide
a more comprehensive measurement of state economic health than other
studies. The Report Card
is based on the idea that both businesses and individuals benefit from
dependable infrastructure, good schools, a healthy environment, a good
quality of life, accountable and transparent government, financial
security for households, and prosperity that is widely shared.

According to its Web site, CFED is a nonprofit organization that works
to ensure that every person can participate
in, contribute to, and benefit from the economy by bringing together
community practice, public policy, and private markets.