Wyoming, Texas, and South Dakota are the three most pro–sound money states in America, according to the 2021 Sound Money Index. Meanwhile, Vermont is ranked absolutely last.
Released last month for 2021, the Sound Money Index uses twelve criteria to determine which states maintain the most pro– and anti–sound money policies in the nation.
The index evaluates each state’s sales and income tax policies on precious metals, whether a state recognizes the monetary role of gold and silver under the US Constitution, whether a state holds pension, reserves, or bonds in gold or silver, whether a state has imposed precious metal dealer/investor harassment laws, and other criteria.
The report was released by the Sound Money Defense League and the Money Metals Exchange.
Alaska, New Hampshire, Utah, and Washington round out the fourth- to seventh-place range on the index.
During 2021, Arkansas and Ohio each ended their sales taxes on purchases of precious metals in their states, joining the forty other states that have already ended this unfair practice. Arkansas and Ohio rose from forty-ninth and forty-fifth place to thirty-third and twentieth place, respectively.
The Buckeye State made a comeback in the past two years, when Ohio pension trustees decided to allocate 5 percent of retirement funds to physical gold—and then the legislature reversed its prior decision to tax the sale of sound money. Ohio had fallen near the bottom of the index but has now worked its way back into the top twenty.
In fact, Ohio now stands as the only state in the U.S. currently known to allocate a percentage of state-held pension funds to physical gold.
According to the index, the very worst environments for sound money can be found in Vermont, New Jersey, Maine, and Kentucky. However, New Jersey, Maine, and Kentucky are expected to consider bills that would improve their rankings in their upcoming 2022 legislative sessions.
Inflation is becoming the top economic problem facing America. As politicians and central bankers continue to create trillions in unbacked currency, sound money has never been more important. Citizens in states that foster sound money can better protect their savings.
