The Baltimore Examiner weighed in last week on a study from the American Legislative Exchange Council on state-by-state tax competitiveness. The study found that many states with low taxes and low wages have experienced population increases and economic growth, and it claimed one was caused by the other. The Examiner's conclusion, expressed on the editorial page, was different than mine.

Examiner:

Here’s a New Year’s resolution for Maryland and Virginia state legislators: Before you leave for Annapolis or Richmond, get a copy of “Rich States, Poor States” from the American Legislative Exchange Council and learn how they got that way.

In this must-read book, former Reagan economic adviser Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore of The Wall Street Journal analyze the real-life consequences of the tax and spending policies in all 50 states.

Laffer and Moore also explain why a record 8 million Americans — more than 1,000 per day — packed up all their worldly possessions in 2006 and moved to high-growth states, which more often than not are those with the lowest tax burdens.

Hancock:

Virginia crushes Maryland in Economic Ranking of All 50 States" was the provocative headline on last week's announcement by a pro-markets, pro-limited government research group.

That's true - if you don't measure poverty, education, business creation, household income, homeownership growth, venture-capital investment, broadband access, major league sports, cultural opportunities, sprawl and pollution.

Other than those areas, in which Maryland does better than Virginia, this is a terrible state in which to live, raise a family, hold a job and own a business.

As you might guess, the study by the American Legislative Exchange Council gave states favorable marks for low taxes, low wages and not much else.

But low taxes aren't everything, or else Mississippi would be a thriving corridor of biotech startups and investment banks. Economies need reasonable taxes and investment in brains, bodies and infrastructure.