FORBES REPORT - BEST STATES TO DO BUSINESS
The Forbes Report Our Best States ranking measures six vital categories for businesses: costs, labor supply, regulatory environment, current economic climate, growth prospects and quality of life. We factor in 33 different points of data to determine the ranks in the six main areas. Business costs that include labor, energy and taxes are weighted the most heavily. We relied on nine different data providers. Moody’s Economy.com is the most utilized resource.MONTANA Overall rank 13 2006 rank 24
Business Costs Rank 23
Labor Rank 8
Regulatory Environment Rank 38
Economic Climate Rank 6
Growth Prospects Rank 16
Quality of Life Rank 35
Population 972,500
Gross State Product 27($bil)
Five-Year Change 3.2(%)
Governor Brian Schweitzer