“California is one of the least free states in the country, largely because of its long-standing poor performance on economic freedom,” the CATO Institute explains in its latest ranking of the 50 states. California, once known as “The Golden State,” used to be at the top of the list specifically for personal and economic freedoms.
CATO scores all 50 states on their overall respect for individual freedom, and also on their respect for three dimensions of freedom considered separately: fiscal policy, regulatory policy, and personal freedom.
The CATO study ranked California #41 in Fiscal Freedoms, #26 in Personal Freedoms, #50 in Regulatory Freedoms, #48 in Education, #37 in Lawsuits, #47 in Land use, #1 (tie) Marriage freedoms, #48 in Occupational freedoms, #5 in Victimless, #47 in Health Insurance, #50 in Labor, #6 in Alcohol, #9 in Asset Forfeiture, #28 Gambling, #45 in Tobacco, #49 in Guns, #1 in Cannabis, #31 in Cable, #17 in Incarceration, #5 in Travel, and #38 in Campaign Finance.
Compare that with Florida which comes in at #2 in overall freedoms, #1 in Fiscal Freedoms, #12 in Personal Freedoms, and #21 in Regulatory Freedoms.
californiaglobe.com/articles/cato-ranks-california-48th-in-personal-and-economic-freedoms-in-u-s/