Read the full op-ed by President J. Stuart Adams, Speaker Mike Schultz and Jonathan Williams, President and Chief Economist of ALEC, published in the Deseret News here.

There’s a quiet moment most mornings across Utah. It happens before the freeway fills, before storefronts open, before the first emails are sent. Lights flick on in kitchens from Logan to St. George. Someone pulls on work boots. Someone else opens a laptop. A small business owner flips the sign to “open.” A student heads out the door, already thinking about what comes next.

These moments, repeated thousands of times each day, are Utah’s economy. Not charts. Not rankings. Not headlines. People.

For the 19th consecutive year, Utah has been named the state with the best economic outlook by Rich States, Poor States: ALEC-Laffer State Economic Competitiveness Index. That is long enough for a child born here to now enter a workforce that has known nothing but opportunity and believing in a better future.

That doesn’t happen by accident or luck, and it certainly doesn’t happen overnight. It’s the result of steady decisions, made over nearly two decades, that consistently put Utahns first. 

It’s the result of families, workers, business owners and policymakers moving in the same direction, and of planning not just for today, but for the future. That’s when you see results: not by chasing what’s popular in the moment, but by staying focused on what works.

For example, Utah has seen one of the largest increases in household income in the nation, nearly 80% growth since 1970. That kind of progress doesn’t come from a single policy or a single year. It comes from consistency. From staying committed when it would be easier to drift.

But the economy isn’t experienced through abstract numbers. It shows up when a parent can find a good job close to home. When a young couple can afford to stay in the community they love. When a business owner feels confident enough to hire someone new, and grow. That’s how a strong economy is built: one decision, one opportunity at a time.

For nearly two decades, Utah has focused on getting the fundamentals right. Keeping taxes low so families keep more of what they earn. Spending responsibly so the state is prepared not just for growth, but for uncertainty. Creating a regulatory environment that encourages innovation, not stifles it.

These aren’t flashy decisions. They don’t always make headlines. But they are the ones that work. And over time, they add up.

But nineteen years of success comes with a challenge: expectations.

Success that lasts this long can start to feel normal, even guaranteed. But it isn’t. Across the country, states that once led have fallen behind, not because of a single decision, but because they have lost focus, drifting away from proven principles. They chased trends, overbuilt government and slowly made it harder to work, invest and grow. Utah cannot afford to follow that path.

If we want to keep leading, we have to stay disciplined with a clear view of the future.

That means increasing housing supply so young families can put down roots. It means managing water wisely in a state where every drop matters. It means increasing energy supplies to power the next industrial revolution. It means investing in infrastructure that keeps pace with one of the nation’s fastest-growing populations. It also means strengthening education and workforce development, so opportunity continues to grow with every generation.

This isn’t about being No. 1 for 19 years. It’s about leading the country into the next 250 years.

The real story of Utah’s economy isn’t that it has stayed on top; it’s that it has stayed intentional. Every budget is balanced. Every policy is carefully debated. Every decision made with the understanding that behind every statistic is a person, a family, a future.

That’s what nineteen years represents.

Not a streak, but a standard.

And if we stay focused and disciplined, Utah won’t just keep up, we’ll continue to lead and build the kind of future others aspire to.

Tags: Jonathan Williams, Nineteen Years and Still Building, President J. Stuart Adams, Rich States Poor States, Speaker Mike Schultz, Stuart Adams