Key Facts
- Per Capita Real GDP
- $37,375 Rank: 20/50 (2007)
- Population
- 1,315,810 Rank: 41/50 (2008)
- Per Capita Personal Income
- $39,311 Rank: 7/50 (2006)
- Unemployment Rate
- 3.50% Rank: 11/50 (2008)
- Business Tax Climate Index
- Rank: 7/50 (2008)
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New Hampshire: Introduction
America’s northeast is home to the relatively small state of New Hampshire. As one of the original 13 colonies New Hampshire is a state rich in history. It was the first state to declare independence from Britain and is always the first to hold presidential primary elections. 33 million tourists come to the state every year to visit its numerous ski resorts, scenic nature trails and 18 miles of Atlantic coastline.
New Hampshire is the only state in the union that has neither a general sales tax nor an individual income tax. The lack of a strong broad based tax system has caused local taxes to be among the highest in the nation. Despite the high local taxes, the overall effect of these policies has been to consistently give the state’s taxpayers one of the lightest tax burdens in the United States.
Over-reliance on textiles in the state’s early history caused a long depression after southern producers entered the market with improved technology and lower costs. Residents in the northern part of the state were spared the most severe effects of the depression thanks to the presence of strong logging and paper industries. Today’s economy is significantly more diversified with manufacturing, tourism, health care and real estate all playing a significant role in the state economy. The manufacturing industry employs roughly 10% of the state’s workforce, led by strong production of computers & electronics.
