Delaware ranks in the bottom half of states in overall freedom, according to a report from a conservative think tank.
The report from the Cato Institute contends that the state “has lost ground even about the rest of the country on economic freedom since 2010.” The state ranked 31st in overall freedom, with many other rankings in the 30s.
Cato tends to give lower marks to states on the East Coast. New York State ranked No. 50, with Maryland and New Jersey not far behind. Pennsylvania ranked 26th. The exception was New Hampshire, which ranked No. 1.
Cato cited the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act as part of the reason for the lower ranking. Cato contends that the state had one of the freest health care insurance systems, before the enactment of the laws.
The state also had among the nation’s highest health insurance costs before and after the legislation that requires everyone to have health coverage.
Unlike other reports, the Cato ranking does not put much stock in the state’s legal system, which typically receives high rankings in other reports.
Cato also does not like the large number of lawyers in the state, although that figure is due, in part, to corporate law cases that are tried in the First State.
The report seems to suggest that higher local property taxes would be preferable to the current system that has the state paying for the bulk of education, health and welfare, and other costs.
The state also gets low rankings for its lack of a right to work law and state minimum wage that is higher than the national number.
A right to work law bars unions from requiring dues from members, an approach that weakens their negotiating power. Right to work law backers say the lack of the law keeps manufacturers out of the state.
Delaware also received low marks for its civil forfeiture statutes which allow for confiscation of property even when the individual is not convicted of an offense. The state ranks last in the nation in that category, Cato notes.
The state did gain higher rankings by approving same-sex marriages and expanding its medical marijuana law.
Cato suggested harsh fiscal medicine for the state that would include reducing education spending and shifting more of the school financing burden to local taxpayers,
The report also suggested a tax credit program for parents’ educational expenses and contributions to scholarship funds. This change would have moved Delaware from 31st to 25th on personal freedom.
The report took a hard line on various types of state spending. In the case of Colorado, which ranks toward the top of the list in freedom, the state was taken to task for spending money on land conservation, a popular move in the scenic state.
The institute is at least partially funded by the billionaire Koch brothers, who are active in many conservative causes..
