Louisiana Ranks High For Small Business Friendliness

Louisiana ranks # 7 on a good list. Thumbtack.com has released its annual study on small business friendliness, and we scored a B+ overall.

The rankings are based on a survey of more than 7,700 real small business owners nationwide -- like photographers, plumbers and graphic designers. Our state also earned high marks for business-friendly labor laws and tax code. Here are the key findings of the survey:

• An A grade for Louisiana's small business training and networking programs.
• Small businesses rated our state's labor and employment laws an A-. Our tax code earned a B+.
• Top-ranking states overall were Utah, Alabama, New Hampshire, Idaho and Texas. The lowest-rated were Illinois, California, Hawaii, Maine and, in last place, Rhode Island.
• Louisiana's online resources for small businesses were rated among the nation's ten best.
• One area of concern for small businesses in Louisiana was obtaining and keeping health insurance, with 47% describing it as "Very Difficult."

Take a look at the full survey results, including complete sets of rankings.