Viva, Las Vegas.

• Position: Business survival better in Nevada than other 49 states and District of Columbia - Brief Article - Polling Data - Statistical Data Included

Interested in starting a small business, or joining one? Head for Nevada, and steer clear of Washington, D.C., says an advocacy group for smaller firms.

Those sites finished first and last, respectively, in a recent survey by the Small Business Survival Committee (SBSC). The group's sixth annual rankings of the states based on their respective policy climates for small business and entrepreneurship appears in the Small Business Survival Index 2001.

"In an increasingly mobile and competitive national economy, differences in government-imposed costs of doing business can make a huge difference between whether a state grows economically or falls behind," adds SBSC president Darrell McKigney.

The index ties together 17 major government-imposed or government-related costs (many tax-related) impacting small businesses and entrepreneurs across a broad spectrum of industries and types of businesses. They are: personal income taxes, capital gains taxes, corporate income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, death taxes, unemployment taxes, health insurance taxes, electricity costs...