Arizona is one of the most innovative states in the nation, according to a new assessment from the Consumer Technology Association.
The CTA’s latest “innovation scorecard” ranked the Grand Canyon State No. 5 in an evaluation of states that considered policies on emerging technologies, broadband and education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM subjects. Arizona was among 13 states considered innovation champions, the report’s highest designation.
The evaluation gave states letter grades in several categories and gave short explanations of those marks. Arizona got three A grades — in drones and advanced air mobility, in self-driving vehicles and in telehealth.
The report said Arizona has welcomed testing in self-driving vehicles and is one of the leading states for self-driving vehicle operations. It also noted that the state allows mobility-as-a-service. When it comes to drones and advanced air mobility, the report said the state has no unreasonable regulations or restrictions that conflict with federal rules.
As for its A in telehealth, CTA said Medicaid reimbursement in the state covers live video telemedicine, store-and-forward care, remote patient monitoring and audio-only treatment.
Coming in ahead of Arizona in the rankings were Washington, Massachusetts, Colorado and Michigan. The five lowest-ranked states were Kentucky, Montana, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
“States that allow businesses to grow and create new competition and even new industries bring benefits to their own residents and to people all over the world," CTA President Gary Shapiro said in a statement. “Our Innovation Champions show that smart policy paired with big ideas can deliver huge rewards for us all.”
CTA is a trade association representing more than 1,300 tech companies. Its latest scorecard was the sixth it has published since 2015.
Arizona’s lowest marks were two C+ grades in the human rights and tort reform categories. The report said Arizona needs to strengthen protections for LGBTQ equality. It also said Arizona’s cost per household for total tort costs was above the national average and that the state lacks strong statutes protecting free speech rights against frivolous lawsuits.
The rest of Arizona’s grades were five Bs. These came in the following categories: attracts investment, broadband, entrepreneurial and small business activity, innovation-friendly sustainable policies and tax friendliness.
The state earned a B- for its tech workforce, noting that Arizona has about 40 tech jobs per 1,000 people and reported about 13% of the population 25 and old having advanced degrees. Increasing the number of residents with advanced degrees was one of the report’s suggestions for improvement in Arizona.
Washington took the No. 1 spot this year in part because it attracted more research and development investment per capita than any other state, the CTA said. Massachusetts, which also ranked ahead of Colorado, leads the country in technology jobs per capita. It also has the most residents over age 25 with advanced degrees.
