Well, it happened again. For the 14th straight year the Rich States, Poor States report sponsored by the state legislative group The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), has assigned the highest grade for the best economic climate in the country to Utah. Low and flat taxation, no unfunded pension problems (the opposite of Illinois), light regulation, and a right to work law make Utah an ideal destination for business, capital and families.

The three authors of the report are CTUP co-founders Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore and ALEC vice president Jonathan Williams.

North Carolina has zoomed up ahead of Arizona, Indiana, Idaho and Florida to take on the number two spot.

Predictably, the big losers are the blue state meccas New York, Illinois, Vermont and California. The two states dropping like a boulder in an avalanche are Michigan (which just became a forced union state), and Washington (which has just adopted a first-ever capital gains tax.

Notice a pattern here?