N.C. rises to No. 2 on Forbes' "Best States for Business and Careers" list

by Drew Elliot, Jones and Blount, October 22, 2015.

North Carolina has risen to No. 2 on Forbes’ “Best States For Business and Careers” ranking, again moving up one spot. The Tarheel State has now moved up one spot in the rankings every year since 2013.

The list factors in business costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, economic climate, growth prospects and quality of life. “Business costs, which include labor, energy and taxes, are weighted the most heavily,” according to the Forbes article.

Utah maintained the top spot in the rankings, but North Carolina is the only state to place in the top five every year of rankings, which Forbes has done for 10 years. The Forbes article notes that North Carolina has the lowest percentage of unionized workers on the nation, a big plus for employers.

Here are the 10 best and worst states in the rankings:

Best States

1. UTAH

2. NORTH CAROLINA

3. NEBRASKA

4. NORTH DAKOTA

5. COLORADO

6. TEXAS

7. VIRGINIA

8. INDIANA

9. SOUTH DAKOTA

10. WASHINGTON

Worst States

41. WEST VIRGINIA

42. MISSISSIPPI

43. MAINE

44. NEW MEXICO

45. RHODE ISLAND

46. ALABAMA

47. ALASKA

48. HAWAII

49. VERMONT

50. NEW JERSEY

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