Nathan Deal
William HagertyChattanooga is straddling the best states in America in competing for business, according to Site Selection magazine.
The business publication on Tuesday ranked Georgia No. 1 and Tennessee No. 2 in the magazine's annual list of the most competitive states for economic development success.
Georgia displaced Texas, which had been No. 1. Texas fell to No. 3 in the newest ranking, behind both Georgia and Tennessee.
Mark Arend, editor of Site Selection, said most of the top states were in the Southeast, including No. 4 Louisiana and No. 5 North Carolina. Georgia was ranked No. 1 by the magazine last November for also having the best business climate in a separate rating of the states.
"Is this a pattern?" Arend asks in the magazine's cover story.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said he thinks it is.
"When I took office in January 2011, I made a promise to the people of Georgia that we wouldn't stop until our state was the No. 1 place in the nation to do business," Deal said. "These rankings are not only a testament to our strong business climate, but they also speak to the commitment and support from our industry partners, communities and people of Georgia."
The No. 2 ranking for Tennessee is the best in Site Selection's annual list of competitive states since the Volunteer State was ranked No. 1 in 2008.
Bill Hagerty, Tennessee's commissioner of economic and community development, said, "Tennessee is at the apex of economic development nationwide and arguably across the globe."
Site Selection ranks states based upon 10 factors, including total new and expanded facilities announced last year, new jobs added in 2013 and the state's tax rankings by the conservative Tax Foundation.
Contact Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or at 757-6340.