Ohio's Business Climate: A Comparative Study with Midwestern Peers
Ohio's economic standing is critically examined against national benchmarks, revealing that the state ranks 41st in median income, significantly below the national average of approximately $77,000. This episode delves into a recent analysis that evaluates Ohio's performance in various domains essential for economic vitality, such as business climate, regulatory burden, cost of living, workforce quality, education, transportation, and overall quality of life. While Ohio demonstrates commendable rankings in transportation and cost of living, it falters in regulatory burden and taxation, areas that are under the control of the state’s governance. The discourse underscores the necessity for the Ohio government and legislature to intensify efforts aimed at revitalizing the state's economic potential, particularly in light of global opportunities that could elevate the standard of living for its citizens. Absent substantial reforms in these pivotal sectors, Ohio risks forfeiting the economic prospects that may not present themselves again for generations.
Takeaways:
- In the context of economic vitality, Ohio's median income significantly lags behind its Midwestern counterparts.
- An analysis revealed that Ohio ranks 20th nationally, indicating a status of moderate economic competitiveness.
- Comparatively, Ohio performs best in transportation and cost of living, which are vital for economic growth.
- The necessity for legislative reform is paramount for Ohio to enhance its economic potential and competitiveness.
- Ohio's middle-class income range is defined as between $41,000 and $124,000, with a median income below the national average.
- To avoid economic stagnation, Ohio must address its regulatory burdens and tax structures effectively.
Links referenced in this episode:
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp
Transcript
"In a time of global opportunity, where does Ohio stack up against the competition?"
An exclusive Ohio Register article by Tom Hach, in partnership with GFI. Sign up at theohioregister.com.
Recently, CNBC did a study analyzing the income range to be middle class by state.
The income analysis included a lower and an upper limit defining middle class as well as the median income, which is the income where half earn above, and half earn below. For Ohio, the middle class income range is 41,000 to $124,000 and the median income is just under $68,000.
Looking further at median income, the national average median income is almost $77,000, placing. Ohio at 41, far down the list.
Included in the nine states lower on the list are Arkansas at 48, Louisiana at 49 and West Virginia 50. Additionally, the median income in Ohio at 41 is lower than its Midwestern peers, Illinois at 18, Wisconsin at 26, Indiana at 37 and Michigan at 38. Strictly using median income as a measure of economic vitality, it does not appear Ohio is doing very well, but there are other factors which come into play to determine economic strength. To get a better understanding of where Ohio stacks up, especially considering the Trump tariffs and the ongoing industrial reshoring.
Grok, an AI tool, was used to conduct further analysis. The query asked for an overall ranking of the states based on the favorability rating of starting or relocating a business using the following business climate, regulatory burden, cost of living, workforce, education, taxes, transportation and quality of life.
For reference, the criteria are defined at the end of the article. The analysis showed Ohio at number 20. Performing toward the middle of the pack.
While the top states were Texas, Florida, South Dakota, Wyoming and North Carolina and the lowest ranked states were California at 46, followed by Hawaii, New Mexico, New Jersey and New York. Looking at peer Midwestern states, Ohio performed comparatively well against Michigan, number 27, Wisconsin number 28, Illinois 41 and worse than Indiana, number 10.
Based on the areas evaluated, Ohio performed best in transportation, number 6, cost of living, number 9, workforce, number 13 and education, number 15 and worst in regulatory burden 28, quality of life taxes 25 and business climate 25.
All areas where Ohio performed worst, especially regarding taxes and regulations, are directly controlled by the Governor and the General Assembly. For Ohio to increase its standard of living during this time of global economic opportunity, the governor and the legislature need to redouble their efforts to revitalize Ohio's economic potential and competitiveness. Without changes in these key areas, Ohio and its citizens risk missing out on the greatest economic moment in generations.
As noted earlier, the State ranking criteria was defined as:
Business Climate - reflects ease of doing business, often tied to tax structure and regulatory environment.
Regulatory Burden - measures the complexity and restrictiveness of state regulations.
Cost of Living - impacts employee recruitment and operational costs.
Workforce Capabilities - considers skill levels and availability of labor.
Education - evaluates the quality of educational systems which supports long term workforce development.
Taxes - focuses on overall tax burden and business tax competitiveness.
Transportation System - assesses infrastructure for logistics and employee commuting.
Quality of Life - encompasses livability factors like crime rates, healthcare and personal freedoms which affect employee retention.
This episode is brought to you by the Grassroots Freedom Initiative, or GFI for short. If you're not already on our email and text lists, please be sure to join our network of thousands of Ohioans.
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