
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, March 29, 1990                   TAG: 9003290149
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A13   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHARLESTON, W.VA.                                LENGTH: Short

VIRGINIA RANKED 6TH IN BUSINESS ABILITY

Virginia has been named sixth best in the nation in a magazine's ranking of the 50 states for financial management while its neighbors made the top and bottom of the list.

Maryland, with its "generally top-notch, competent" leadership, was rated No. 1 and West Virginia, whose planning was called "little better than Ouija board guesswork," ranked last in the April 17 issue of Financial World.

The New York-based magazine said it evaluated states as independent business entities, with emphasis on balancing the budget, predicting revenue accurately and using generally accepted accounting principles.

Virginia was praised for pooling money from municipalities and investing it for high returns, getting tax refunds to taxpayers quickly, non-partisan revenue forecasts and strong program evaluations that often lead to policy changes.

Utah was ranked second by the publication, followed by Minnesota, Pennsylvania and South Carolina. North Carolina was ninth.

At the bottom of the list were Massachusetts in 48th, followed by Louisiana and West Virginia, which raised taxes a record $392 million last year in a bid to straighten out its finances.

"At least Louisiana has oil," the magazine said. "West Virginia has had almost nothing except cheap coal, corrupt government and poverty."

by CNB