Cost of Doing Business

Massachusetts has become, in some ways, a more affordable place to do business, according to research by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. In 1993, when MTF released its first report on business costs, the state ranked near the top in six key categories: health care costs, manufacturing wages, workers’ compensation insurance rates, unemployment compensation rates, corporate taxes, and electricity costs. In a 1995 report, MTF noted that workers’ comp. costs had come down significantly — a result of a major legislative reform effort in 1991. The following tables are based on updated information from MTF. In the workers’ comp. index, Massachusetts has dropped from 14th in the nation in 1993 to 19th two years later and now to 21st. In the manufacturing wage index, the state was ranked 10th in 1993 and 1995, but now has fallen to 20th — with wages 1.7 percent above the national average. Energy costs remain high. It remains to be seen whether last fall’s legislation deregulating the electricity industry will bring dividends.