Vote with Your Feet: Free States Are Happier and Richer

The greater the economic freedom, the wealthier and happier the people.
From minimum-wage laws to higher progressive taxation to greater unionization to larger welfare programs to more regulation, left liberals demand a stronger and more economically active central government. Advocates of laissez-faire, on the other hand, favor smaller government, less regulation, lower taxes, and greater individual opportunity and property rights.
But which economic policy approach actually yields the best results?
We’ve already clearly demonstrated – via international and US state migration rates – that people the world over are naturally drawn toward greater economic freedom. Across countries, and even across states, millions of people every year migrate away from greater taxation and more regulation and toward lower taxation and less regulation. But are they better off?

This post was published at Ludwig von Mises Institute on SEPTEMBER 17, 2015.