Arizona is proving to be a reliable state for businesses, according to the recent group of surveys that measure business friendliness and economic development activity. Generally, the Grand Canyon State again received high marks, although it continues to sink in the CNBC survey.

Here at Commercial Real Estate Group of Tucson, I like to keep track of these high-level investigations into the pulse of our state’s and area’s strengths and weaknesses.

Area Development

Arizona ranked 11th in the magazine’s 2021 “Top States for Doing Business,” a three-slot jump from the previous year. It landed in the top 10 in 10 of the 13 categories that the magazine examines for its rankings. Arizona hit its highest category ranking in competitive labor environment, tied for 5th. It tied for 9th in overall cost of doing business.

Arizona also earned the publication’s 2022 Gold Shovel Award in the category of 5 million to 8 million population. It noted the location of a lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant in Buckeye and Intel’s expansion of semiconductor manufacturing in Chandler, both of which will generate more than 6,000 jobs.

Arizona’s top eight projects are expected to create over 9,000 jobs.

Business Facilities

Arizona fell out of the top 10 best business-friendly states in the magazine’s annual rankings report. But it did make it on the short list of several other measures: semiconductors, 3rd; fastest growing states, 4th; installed solar capacity, 5th; aerospace and defense leaders, 5th; solar power jobs, 6th, and tech talent pipeline, 9th.

Chief Executive

In putting Arizona no. 4 in its CEO rankings for its “Best & Worst States for Business,” the magazine cited the Small Business Jobs Index that said the state was tops in small business job creation in 2021. That indicated a recovering of its job loss from the COVID-19 pandemic. “Phoenix remains one of the top labor markets in the United States,” it said.
The publication made special mention of the state’s Arizona Advanced Technology Network, a government-business-academic partnership to meet demand for high-tech manufacturing workers. Pima Community College is among the three state community colleges that have developed a unified, industry-recognized curriculum.

CNBC

While the business cable channel CNBC’s “Top States for Business” ranking for Arizona continued to fall—this year to 34th—the number crunchers put it high on a few business-related metrics: no. 4 for business friendliness, no. 6 for infrastructure and no. 7 for workforce.

Non-business categories continue to be Arizona’s downfall. It ranked 42nd in education and last in life, health and inclusion.

Site Selection

The magazine’s “State Business Climate” survey put Arizona tied at 8th, helped by a no. 15 placement for total revenue as share of total expenses and a no. 18 slot for higher education R&D expenditures. In the important metric of the executive survey, Arizona placed 15th.

Site Selection took Arizona off of its top 10 in its Prosperity Cup rankings, but continued to put it tops in its mountain region that also includes, in order of ranking, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana. The Prosperity Cup measures the success of state-level economic development agencies.

I can help you make sense of these business-friendly state rankings and provide the granular detail that will help you make your Tucson commercial real estate decisions that best puts your operations on the path of success. For a complimentary consultation, contact me at michael@cretucson.com or +1-520-299-3400.