Good News for Utah in Survey of the Most Independent States in America

For July Wallethub looked at the numbers to find what was the most independent state, and it all pointed to Utah at the top. This is more good vibes for the beehive state that has been receiving a lot of attention recently. 

Utah Low on Government Assistance and Federal Funding 

The study looked at all 50 states and broke down the indicators of dependency people experience in their lives. They looked at five different categories that included:  

Consumer finances, the government, the job market, international trade and personal vices.   

Of these, Utah stood out for having few people on government assistance and the state taking the least when it comes to federal funding.

Specifically only 1.6% of people in Utah collect public assistance and the number who receive SNAP benefits or food stamps is 5.3%.  

Good Economy and Low Personal Vices Help Utah 

That was only part of the good news. Utah’s economy is doing well with low unemployment, right now at 3.2%, and good wages. This allows for less dependency on personal debt. 

The other category that helped Utah's score is that there is less dependency on cigarettes, alcohol, and addictive drugs. This clean living helped boost the score and put us over the top.

Read More: Surging Crude Oil Production is Remarkably Good for Utah

Colorado and Virginia followed Utah while on the other end of the list were three states in the South. It shows Mississippi at #48 followed by Kentucky and Louisiana at the bottom as the most dependent of states.