Connecticut is the eleventh most independent state in the nation according to a recent study from WalletHub.
The study evaluated the self-reliance of states based on five sources of dependency, including consumer finances, personal vices, the job market, the government, and international trade.
Connecticut received the worst rankings for dependency on the job market and international trade. WalletHub’s study looked at factors like industry variety, job growth rate, and several unemployment and underemployment measures to rate states’ job-market dependency. Connecticut ranks 35 out of 50 states.
Connecticut was ranked 27 for international trade dependency, a metric that looked at states’ share of jobs supported by exported goods, private industry employment at foreign-owned firms, and the share of state GDP generated by exports to other countries.
Connecticut ranked more independent in vice, financial, and government dependency.
The state ranked third-highest across all states in independence from vices, a metric that looked at categories like binge drinking, smoking, gambling disorders, and time spent watching television or using electronic devices. Connecticut also tied with Florida for having the second-lowest percentage of adults with gambling disorders.
Connecticut ranked 11 in financial dependency, which looked at factors like median credit score, the percentage of households with money saved for things like emergencies or for their children’s college education, homeownership rates, foreclosure rates, and bankruptcy rates.
The state also ranked third-highest for percentage of households with rainy-day and emergency funds.
Connecticut ranked 16 out of states dependent on the government, which looked at the share of households receiving public assistance, the number of government employees, the state’s share of occupied subsidized housing, and when in the calendar year taxpayers have earned enough to cover their federal, state, and local tax burden.
Connecticut ranked the second most independent of New England states in WalletHub’s study. Only Massachusetts received a higher rating, ranking as the sixth most independent state. Rhode Island rated lowest in the region, ranking as the thirty-second most independent state.
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