Hawaii ranks low Despite Gov. Ben Cayetano's push for Hawaii to diversify its economy, the state's ranking on the national New Economy Index by the Progressive Policy Institute dropped this year to 35th out of 50 states, according to a survey released today.
in economic
dynamism
The state has dropped from
26th place to 35th in three yearsBy Tim Ruel
truel@starbulletin.comThat's compared to a ranking of 26 in a similar 1999 index put out by the Washington, D.C.-based institute, which is a think tank linked to the Democratic Leadership Council.
The three top states in 2002 were Massachusetts, Washington and California. The three at the bottom were West Virginia, Mississippi and Arkansas. Hawaii fell between Oklahoma and Indiana.
The index defines the New Economy as an index of upheaval, with an emphasis on reorganization of firms, dynamic capital markets, globalization and volatile labor markets. The report's goal is to push for public policy improvements.
"Developing a vibrant New Economy is not an end in itself; it is the means to advance larger progressive goals: higher incomes, new economic opportunities, more individual choice and freedom, greater dignity and autonomy for working Americans and stronger communities," said the report's author, Robert D. Atkinson, vice president of the Progressive Policy Institute and director of its Technology & New Economy Project.
The report identifies economic strengths and weaknesses of each state using five categories: knowledge jobs, economic dynamism, globalization, technological innovation capacity and transformation to a digital economy.
Each category is based on rankings of several individual indicators. Once again, Hawaii placed last in the number of jobs at companies that have had consistent 20 percent revenue growth for four straight years. When it came to the percentage of adults who have Internet access, Hawaii's ranking dropped to 40th from 21st.