Puerto Rico ranks last in economic freedom for 3rd consecutive year
A Fraser Institute report links the island’s low score to government policies and regulatory framework.
Puerto Rico has ranked last among U.S. jurisdictions for economic freedom for the third consecutive year, according to the Economic Freedom of North America 2024 report published by Canada’s Fraser Institute.
The report evaluates economic freedom in 93 provincial or state governments across Canada, the United States and Mexico, using 2022 data, the most recent year for which complete information is available.
In the U.S. subnational index, Puerto Rico scored 2.13 out of 10, ranking well below the lowest-ranked U.S. state, New York (4.15). The top-performing states were New Hampshire (8.12), South Dakota (8.05), Florida (8.03), Tennessee (8.01) and Texas (8).
“Between 2013 and 2022, the government of Puerto Rico declared itself unable to pay its debt; the U.S. government established an oversight board to manage the island’s fiscal crisis; the Government of Puerto Rico filed for bankruptcy; and the island was struck by two hurricanes, a series of earthquakes and the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ángel Carrión-Tavárez, coauthor of the report and director of research and policy at the Institute for Economic Liberty (ILE).
“Yet, Puerto Rico’s overall score was 2.13 at both the beginning and the end of this 10-year period,” he added. “This suggests that the island’s low score is more closely tied to the public policies of the Government of Puerto Rico and the regulatory framework it has established than to the net effect of these economic events.”
The report also highlights that Puerto Rico’s score is 1.01 points lower than Newfoundland and Labrador, the lowest-ranked Canadian province, and only 0.03 points higher than Baja California, Mexico’s highest-ranked state.
This means Puerto Rico aligns more closely with Mexico in terms of economic freedom than with the United States or Canada.
“The link between economic freedom and prosperity is clear: People who live in provinces or states with lower taxation, less government intervention, sound regulatory regimes and flexible labor markets tend to live happier, healthier and wealthier lives,” said Dean Stansel, coauthor and research associate professor at the Bridwell Institute for Economic Freedom at Southern Methodist University.
The report, co-authored by Stansel, José Torra and Matthew Mitchell, is part of the Fraser Institute’s Economic Freedom of the World study. It has been cited in more than 400 academic articles and policy studies globally, including 50 publications in the past three years.
Carrión-Tavárez emphasized that policy reforms are critical to improving the island’s economic standing.
“Puerto Rico urgently needs public policy reforms to strengthen economic freedom on the island — that is, to make it easier for people to work, start businesses and earn a living without undue government barriers or interference,” he said.
I believe what you’re actually trying to say is “People who live in colonies tend to live harder, poorer and more repressed lives.” Colonialism always = bad for the residents. Hence why the U.S. became the U.S. many moons ago.
This makes no mention of the Jones Act or fact that PR is a colony of the United Sates and can’t negotiate its own trade agreements. Nor does it receive equal benefits to the other places mentioned in this study. Therefore impossible to take this analysis seriously or consider legitimate.