William P. Ruger

Glad to see the consistent methodology across the years. Sad to see my home state of Colorado now at #19, following such a drop since placing at #2 in 2014.

The sixth edition, published in 2021, uses a consistent methodology and has relevant updates. Many of the revisions since the last edition reflect changes in regulatory policy and abortion, which seems especially relevant at this particular time.

The freedom index tracks personal and economic freedom for each state. Roger and Sorens have constructed a compelling approach, leveraging a range of economic and legal data sources. The state rankings and profiles are interesting. What I found most valuable was the correlation analyses, which show how freedom corresponds to net migration.