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Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Scott Walker stated on July 19, 2017 in a tweet: \"We took Wisconsin from the Bottom 10 for business to the Top 10.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" mostly-false/6a6ef6075c162fdccf5eb960e683dcd1.jpg.\\") ![\\"barely- true\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") * Economy * Jobs * States * Wisconsin * Scott Walker ![\\"Gov.](\\" Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin touted the state\'s business climate under his watch. (Associated Press photo) ![\\"Eric](\\" mug_small/f8ec7291d825b9e6d54a4e23eef2704c.jpg\\"/) By Eric Litke August 23, 2017 # Testing Scott Walker\'s Top 10 business ranking claim Gov. Scott Walker has sought to make business development and job creation a foundational part of his legacy in the state — a drive boosted by the announcement that Foxconn Technology Group plans to build a $10 billion plant here. So it’s no surprise the state’s business climate has been a common refrain in the push to win the plant and in the victory laps since Foxconn’s decision. That included this July 19, 2017, tweet from Walker: \"We took Wisconsin from the Bottom 10 for business to the Top 10. Our reforms are working and more are on the way!\" The same claim showed up in a column published Aug. 4, 2017, in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. What does it mean to be in the \"Top 10\" for business, and who decides that? Let’s dig in. Many surveys, many results Walker’s tweet didn’t cite a source, but Walker spokesman Tom Evenson said it referred to a ranking from Chief Executive Magazine, which placed Wisconsin No. 10 in its 2017 Best & Worst States for Business. The same survey ranked Wisconsin 41st in 2010, the year Walker was elected. That’s the bottom 10 of his claim. The ranking — which Walker’s touted in a news release when it was released in May — is based on a survey asking CEOs their perceptions of each state. Many national groups do similar surveys with a variety of methodologies, but most others aren’t so keen on Wisconsin’s business climate. Here’s a sampling of the most recent ratings from prominent sources: * CNBC’s 2017 scorecard ranked Wisconsin 21st in economic climate, based on an analysis of more than 60 measures, such as workforce, infrastructure, cost of doing business, economy and quality of life. * The Tax Foundation’s 2017 ranking of state tax climate pegs Wisconsin at 39th for how well a state’s tax system is structured for business. * Site Selection Magazine ranked Wisconsin 25th for overall business climate in 2016, which it calculates by combining a survey of corporate site selectors and data on recent projects sited in the state. * Forbes ranked Wisconsin 27th in 2016 among its best states for business based on a combined ranking that included business cost, labor supply, regulatory environment, economic climate, growth prospects and quality of life. * The Kauffman Index publishes three rankings on aspects of entrepreneurial activity. Among the largest 25 states in 2016, it ranked Wisconsin second for Main Street entrepreneurship (per capita small businesses and business owners), 23rd for growth entrepreneurship (how much new businesses have grown) and 25th for startup activity (number of new businesses and business owners). * An undated ranking from US NEWS & World Report puts the state’s business environment at 32nd, based on private business birth rate and number of patents per capita. Among the prominent national rankings, the Chief Executive Magazine one cited by Walker is the only one that does not have some objective, data-based component. Mike Winkleman, the magazine’s editor in chief, said the survey was sent to CEOs of the 42,000 largest companies in the country, of which about 500 responded. Each was asked to rank the four best and four worst states for doing business, and those were compiled into the national rankings using a points system. #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" JD Vance stated on August 25, 2024 in an interview on NBC\'s \"Meet the Press\" “Anything that you lose on the tariff from the perspective of the consumer, you gain in higher wages, so you\'re ultimately much better off.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Louis Jacobson • August 29, 2024 Rankings overly simplistic, experts say Site selectors, who analyze state and local business climates for a living, say such rankings are trying to paint broadly and objectively what is inherently specific and subjective. \"There is no ‘best’ state (or states) for every type of business,\" Andrew Shapiro, managing director of site selection company Biggins Lacy Shapiro & Company, said in an email. \"These rankings can be methodologically suspect and as a result can vary wildly from survey to survey and from year to year.\" A concept like \"business climate\" means different things to different people and can’t really be objectively defined or ranked in a general way, said Darin Buelow, a principal and head of the site selection group for Deloitte Consulting. \"Any site selection or location decision has to be customized to a particular company and their particular needs,\" Buelow said. \"A state or a community or a county might be a great place to do business for one company in a certain industry sector, but it could be a terrible place to do business for another company.\" Larry Gigerich, executive managing director of Ginovus, an Indiana-based site selection firm, said the surveys can catch the eye of business leaders in some cases and may get a state some initial consideration, but conditions specific to that project and industry determine final decisions. He said the rankings his firm typically pays attention to are CNBC, Chief Executive Magazine, Site Selection Magazine and the Kauffman Index’s growth entrepreneurship score. Wisconsin ranked an average of 20th among those four. Moving in the right direction Chief Executive Magazine is an outlier in how highly it ranks Wisconsin’s current business climate, but Wisconsin’s rankings have improved across the board since 2010. The CNBC ranking rose from 29 to 21, Forbes from 40 to 27 and the Tax Foundation a lesser uptick from 42 to 39. Site Selection Magazine only ranks the top 25, and Wisconsin was not ranked in 2010. \"I think for the most part the state has shown significant improvement in terms of both perception and its business climate\" since Walker took over, said Gigerich, who has helped locate sites for 300 projects, including about 25 that considered Wisconsin. \"Wisconsin is not one of the lowest-cost states to do business in, but it is one that is now competitive, where I think a decade ago Wisconsin struggled with its tax structure and … economic incentive programs.\" Several site selectors pointed to the creation of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation as a step in the right direction, though they noted the state is still being held back by its aging transportation infrastructure. \"They’ve certainly done a better job of marketing and articulating Wisconsin’s value proposition as a destination for advanced manufacturing,\" Buelow said. Evenson, the Walker spokesman, said Foxconn’s decision to build in Wisconsin is evidence of change.The Asian electronics giant has said it will employ thousands at a massive flat screen television plant in southeastern Wisconsin. Our rating Walker said Wisconsin is now a Top 10 state for business when it used to be in the bottom 10. Site selection professionals say they have seen improvements in Wisconsin’s business environment, but note there is no consensus on how to define and rank the business climate between states. Walker’s claim was made broadly and without attribution even though it referred to just one of many rankings that attempt to quantify data and perceptions on states’ business environments. It is the only prominent national ranking to rank Wisconsin in the Top 10 aside from an index that focuses narrowly on small businesses. We rate Walker’s claim Mostly False. Share the Facts 2017-08-23 19:08:22 UTC PolitiFact ![\\"PolitiFact\\"](\\" logo-big.jpg\\"/) 3 1 7 ![\\"PolitiFact](\\" mostlyfalse.jpg\\") PolitiFact Rating: Mostly False \"We took Wisconsin from the Bottom 10 for business to the Top 10.\" Scott Walker Wisconsin governor, Republican ![](\\" In a tweet Wednesday, July 19, 2017 2017-07-19 Read More info #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Walker: Foxconn is a transformational, once-in-a- lifetime opportunity for Wisconsin, Aug. 4, 2017 Twitter.com, Scott Walker, July 19, 2017 Email exchange with Tom Evenson, spokesman for Gov. Scott Walker, July 31 to Aug. 4, 2017 Chief Executive Magazine, 2017 Best & Worst States for Business Email exchange with Mike Winkleman, editor in chief, Chief Executive Magazine, Aug. 2, 2017 CNBC, America’s Top States for Business 2017 Tax Foundation, 2017 State Business Tax Climate Index Site Selection Magazine, ranking of state business climates, November 2016 Interview with Mark Arend, editor in chief of Site Selection Magazine, Aug. 7, 2017 Forbes, Best States for Business, 2016 Kauffman Index, State Rankings, 2016 US News & World Report, Business Environment Rankings Interview with Robert Hess, executive managing director, Newmark Grubb Knight Frank Global Corporate Services, Aug. 4, 2017 Interview with Darin Buelow, principal, head of the site selection group for Deloitte Consulting, Aug. 4, 2017 Interview with Larry Gigerich, executive managing director, Ginovus, Aug. 4, 2017 Email exchange with Andrew Shapiro, managing director, Biggins Lacy Shapiro & Company, Aug. 1, 2017 Interview with Jeannette Goldsmith, president, Goldsmith Strategy, Aug. 4, 2017 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Eric Litke slide 4 to 6 of 15 ![](\\" ![](\\" Mark Pocan stated on February 12, 2021 in a tweet: Ron Johnson didn’t “show up” for a day of impeachment hearings. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 16, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on February 15, 2021 in a radio interview: Says Jan. 6 Capitol riot “didn’t seem like an armed insurrection.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 15, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Dan O\'Donnell stated on February 3, 2021 in in a commentary: November election data shows a “stunning anomaly in the rejection rate of absentee ballots.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • February 12, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Mark Born stated on March 21, 2021 in a TV appearance: “Private insurance gives … better coverage” than people would get under a Medicaid expansion. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • April 21, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Janet Bewley stated on March 28, 2021 in TV interview: Says Republican lawmakers delayed COVID-19 testing ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • April 16, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tony Evers stated on March 30, 2021 in Twitter: “It took the Legislature nearly 300 days to act on a (COVID-19) bill during this pandemic.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • April 2, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Shelley Grogan stated on March 29, 2021 in a radio ad: Judge Jeff Davis \"spent years defending a convicted cop killer\" and \"tried to get him off the hook.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 30, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" James Edming stated on March 23, 2021 in a speech: “You can’t tell me they can (develop a safe vaccine) in eight to 10 months. Or a year. It takes more time than that.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 26, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on March 20, 2021 in a speech: “There was no violence on the Senate side, in terms of the chamber.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 23, 2021 ![](\\" sen-stroebel/626cbc5b71c026c4147c955b46d1e90a.jpg\\") ![](\\" sen-stroebel/43141e5e308588b580466ad546acd45c.jpg\\") Duey Stroebel stated on March 7, 2021 in a TV interview: \"We’ve had more voter turnout since voter ID was passed than ever before.\" ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 19, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on March 10, 2021 in a Facebook post: Diesel prices jumped from $1.69 to $3.19 since Biden took office, and the president is to blame. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 17, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on March 4, 2021 in in various forums: On passing high-dollar legislation with no time to read it. ![\\"full-flop\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"full-flop\\"](\\" flop.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 11, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Gordon Hintz stated on February 23, 2021 in a speech: Republicans are “trying to create a fake unemployment insurance crisis.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • March 4, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Scott Fitzgerald stated on February 27, 2021 in a press release: “More than 91% of the spending in this $1.9 trillion package is not used for pandemic relief.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 1, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Sarah Godlewski stated on February 6, 2021 in a tweet: “On average, 17% of a family’s income goes towards child care in Wisconsin.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 23, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Mark Pocan stated on February 12, 2021 in a tweet: Ron Johnson didn’t “show up” for a day of impeachment hearings. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 16, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on February 15, 2021 in a radio interview: Says Jan. 6 Capitol riot “didn’t seem like an armed insurrection.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 15, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Dan O\'Donnell stated on February 3, 2021 in in a commentary: November election data shows a “stunning anomaly in the rejection rate of absentee ballots.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • February 12, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Mark Born stated on March 21, 2021 in a TV appearance: “Private insurance gives … better coverage” than people would get under a Medicaid expansion. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • April 21, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Janet Bewley stated on March 28, 2021 in TV interview: Says Republican lawmakers delayed COVID-19 testing ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • April 16, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tony Evers stated on March 30, 2021 in Twitter: “It took the Legislature nearly 300 days to act on a (COVID-19) bill during this pandemic.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • April 2, 2021 ### Testing Scott Walker\'s Top 10 business ranking claim * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 13, 2024 in a post: Vice President Kamala Harris’ college professors disparaged her as their “worst student.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 17, 2024 in a post: Photo shows Kamala Harris posing beside Sean “Diddy” Combs. ![\\"false\\"](\\" 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Ruben Gallego’s “first act in Congress was to propose legislation to BAN the use of the term ‘illegal alien.’” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Mia Osmonbekov • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Sherrod Brown stated on September 4, 2024 in a TV interview: Of Bernie Moreno, “Now, he’s arguing for a national abortion ban, no exceptions.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Caleb McCullough • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 16, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Country Music Television (CMT) has announced a permanent boycott of Taylor Swift.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 18, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Viral image stated on September 11, 2024 in a Facebook post: “Disney World officially moving to Nashville.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 18, 2024 Load more ### Support independent fact-checking. Become a member! 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We took Wisconsin from the Bottom 10 for business to the Top 10