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Saturday, June 20, 2009
N.M. Rates Low for Business Climate
By Richard Metcalf
Copyright © 2009 Albuquerque Journal Journal Staff Writer
Win some, lose some.
Low scores for its litigation climate and quality of life — including education and crime — put the Land of Enchantment near the bottom on a new ranking of "Best States for Business."
Directorship magazine's ranking, based on eight measures, put New Mexico at 47, just ahead of Kentucky, Rhode Island and West Virginia. The top states for business were Texas, Virginia and Utah.
Directorship is published by the National Association of Corporate Directors, which is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit with 10,000 members. The rankings, published in the current June/July issue, are the magazine's first on a state-by-state basis for business.
"Obviously it really bothered me," said Fred Mondragón, the state economic development secretary, about the state's overall ranking of 47. "We should be at least in the 20s, not the high 40s."
New Mexico came in at 38 for its litigation climate, which was the most important measure in the ranking because of its significance to corporate directors. Litigation climate is based on an assessment of how each state's tort system works, particularly with regard to civil lawsuits on legal issues such as liability.
New Mexico came in dead last in the quality of life measure, which is based on a Forbes magazine ranking that considers schools, health, crime and poverty rates. The state ranked 40 for the number of Fortune 500 companies that have a presence here.
New Mexico's best showings were in the cost-of-labor measure, where it ranked 16, and the state economy measure, where it came in at 22.
Mondragón said what was most bothersome about the low ranking was that New Mexico, particularly Albuquerque, has done well in recent ratings by U.S. News and World Report and Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazines, he said. Those ratings, released earlier this month , were both on the theme of good places to live.
Directorship magazine notes in its cover story on the rankings that they should be taken with a grain of salt. "States can vary dramatically from one part of the city to the next, and, while a state might not perform well in the state-by-state rankings, there may be areas that are very attractive to specific industries," it notes.
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