Being last or near the bottom is not always bad!

According to a Fact Sheet just published by The Wyoming Department of Administration & Information on July 23, 2008, Wyoming ranks at or near the bottom in many categories.  In addition to Total Population and Population per Square Mile (50th and 49th, respectively) the state's lowest point is higher than that found in 48 other states, and it is 2nd in Mean Elevation.  Other items of interest near the bottom include Crimes and Robberies per 100,000 (47th and 50th, respectively); New AIDS Cases per 100,000 (50th); % of Population in Poverty and % of Population Receiving Food Stamps (46th and 50th, respectively); Unemployment Rate (46th); and Gasoline Tax Rate (49th).  Items with which Wyoming is at or near the top include 1st National Park (Yellowstone); 1st National Monument (Devil's Tower); Average Wind Speed (1st); Per Capita State/Local Government Expenditures for Higher Education (3rd); Community Hospitals per 100,000 (5th); Per Capita Personal Income (6th); Coal Production and Natural Gas Production (1st and 2nd, respectively); and % of Households Headed by Married Couples (3rd).

In the last week, Wyoming has had the destinction of being in the news twice for its favorable business climate.  On April 8, 2008, Pollina Corporate Real Estate Inc. ranked Wyoming in the Top Ten Pro-Business States.  Polina's study examines twenty-nine factors relative to states’ efforts to be pro-business.  Wyoming has been in the top ten for at least 5 years now, and was Number 5 for 2008.

On April 10, 2008, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) published the "Business Tax Index 2008.  The Index ranks the states according to the costs of their tax systems for small business start up and growth.  Wyoming is Number 3, behind South Dakota and Nevada, respectively.