The American Freedom Network

Freedom Index – The 50 States Ranked

     The State Policy Index, developed by George Mason University, is a libertarian-leaning rating of the relative personal freedom levels of all 50 states.  (It’s libertarian enough to have been the subject of a story on www.lewrockwell.com.)  The categories include measures of personal, regulatory and economic freedom, as well as overall scores.  Specific items of state policy were selected and assigned varying weights proportionate to the impact each has on the daily lives of its’ residents.  Items include the presence or absence of smoking bans, eminent domain abuse, sobreity checkpoints, marijuana laws and their enforcement, gun control, and the like.  Tax and regulatory policy also factored into the rankings, with weights assigned to items such as how onerous occupational licensure laws are, taxation levels, and so forth.
     As a Michigander, I am used to seeing my state made a national whipping boy, whether for GM and Chrysler taking federal loans (at least they weren’t gifts, like AIG received), the 0-16 Lions, nation’s-highers 11.6 unemployment, the foolish antics of Detroit City Council, Michael Moore, et cetera.  Therefore, I am proud to note that the State Policy Index ranked Michigan #1 for regulatory climate.  The study’s authors were also surprised, but stand by their data, which shows that Michigan is the friendliest place to live, in terms of regulatory hassles that citizens routinely face.  Michigan ranked #14 overall, and was above average in every category except fiscal policy.  (Eight years into our one-state recession before the rest of you joined us, this comes as no surprise.)  The study tracks to some degree with the explicitly libertarian Mackinac Center’s B grade for Governor Granholm’s fiscal policy her first year in office (2003).  Like President Clioton, she has governed with Republicans controlling at least one house of the legislative branch, which perhaps instilled an extra measure of fiscal discipline.
     The study held few other surprises – states in the Deep South tend to be economically feee, but are restrictive of expressions of personal freedom; costal states tend to score higher on personal than on economic freedom, and Western states tend to be less restrictive in both categories.   Perhaps unsurprisingly, New York finished dead last in the overall ranking.  Voting patterns correlate with relative measures of freedom in the various categories, as well.
     Perhaps the grass always being greener on the other side of the state line, one’s view of one’s home state’s policies isn’t fully objective, as faults (and pet peeves) are magnified, while the virtues (real or otherwise) of some place else (usually with better weather) are magnified.  This study provides a nice, scholarly reality check, and a bit of good cheer for Michigan – which can use it.