Mike Holt’s Rating of the Electrical Industry - 2010
Here’s your update! Mike’s “Safest States” ranking has become an annual report that is widely anticipated. In his continued dedication to safety, Mike’s analysis rates and assigns a safety grade to each of the U.S. states based on the state’s requirements for the electrical industry. The standard for measurement in these findings comes from the state-wide adoption of the requirement, and we do acknowledge that there may be counties within the states that may rate higher that are not reflected in the data reported.
Congratulations to Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota and Wyoming for their “A+” rating. These states have set the standard for electrical safety by adopting the most current Code on a state-wide level, requiring licensing for Inspectors, Apprentices, Journeymen, Master Electricians and Professional Engineers, as well as requiring continuing education at the state level for all of these classifications.
We'd also like to congratulate Nebraska for being the most improved state. Their grade has gone from B to A- due to the adoption of the 2008 NEC which becomes effective in July 2010, and the requirement for PDH for Engineers, which we had not reported accurately in July 2009.
We acknowledge and congratulate all those states that continue to set high standards in electrical safety.
The chart below summarizes our findings. To find out how the 2010 grades were determined, click here or click on the map image to see the complete spreadsheet.
2010 Data
2009 Data
2007 Data
If you have updated information that you feel would change the rankings please let us know. Remember that all grades are based on the state standard.
State |
2007 |
2009 |
2010 |
Change |
Reason for Change |
ALABAMA |
B- |
C- |
C- |
0 |
|
ALASKA |
B |
B+ |
A- |
+1 |
PDH required for Engineers |
ARIZONA |
D |
D |
D |
0 |
|
ARKANSAS |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
CALIFORNIA |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
COLORADO |
C+ |
B- |
B- |
0 |
|
CONNECTICUT |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
DC |
C |
C |
C |
0 |
|
DELAWARE |
A- |
B+ |
A- |
+1 |
08NEC effective 11/11/09 |
FLORIDA |
B+ |
B |
B+ |
+1 |
08NEC effective 10/1/09 |
GEORGIA |
B |
B- |
B- |
0 |
|
HAWAII |
B- |
C |
C |
0 |
|
IDAHO |
B+ |
B+ |
A- |
+1 |
PDH required for Engineers |
ILLINOIS |
D |
D |
D |
0 |
|
INDIANA |
C- |
C- |
C- |
0 |
|
IOWA |
D |
A- |
A |
+1 |
Inspectors req. CEUs |
KANSAS |
C- |
D |
D |
0 |
|
KENTUCKY |
A- |
A- |
A |
+1 |
08NEC effective 9/1/09 |
LOUISIANA |
C |
C+ |
B- |
+1 |
08NEC effective 1/1/2010 |
MAINE |
A |
A |
A |
0 |
|
MARYLAND |
D |
D |
D |
0 |
|
MASSACHUSETTS |
A- |
A+ |
A |
-1 |
*No PDH required for Engineers |
MICHIGAN |
A- |
A- |
A |
+1 |
08NEC effective 12/2/09 |
MINNESOTA |
B+ |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
|
MISSISSIPPI |
D+ |
D+ |
D+ |
0 |
|
MISSOURI |
D+ |
D |
D |
0 |
|
MONTANA |
B |
B |
B |
0 |
|
NEBRASKA |
B+ |
B |
A- |
+2 |
08NEC effective 7/12/10;*PDH for Engineers |
NEVADA |
C- |
C- |
C- |
0 |
|
NEW HAMPSHIRE |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
NEW JERSEY |
B+ |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
NEW MEXICO |
B+ |
B+ |
B+ |
0 |
|
NEW YORK |
D+ |
D+ |
D+ |
0 |
|
NORTH CAROLINA |
A |
A |
A |
0 |
|
NORTH DAKOTA |
A+ |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
|
OHIO |
A- |
B+ |
B+ |
0 |
|
OKLAHOMA |
A+ |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
|
OREGON |
A+ |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
|
PENNSYLVANIA |
C |
C- |
C |
+1 |
Inspectors req. CEUs |
RHODE ISLAND |
A |
A |
A |
0 |
|
SOUTH CAROLINA |
B- |
B- |
B |
+1 |
08NEC effective 7/1/09 |
SOUTH DAKOTA |
A |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
|
TENNESSEE |
B |
B |
B |
0 |
|
TEXAS |
B+ |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
UTAH |
A |
A |
A |
0 |
|
VERMONT |
B |
B+ |
A- |
+1 |
PDH required for Engineers |
VIRGINIA |
B+ |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
WASHINGTON |
A- |
A |
A |
0 |
|
WEST VIRGINIA |
B |
B |
B+ |
+1 |
08NEC effective 7/1/2010 |
WISCONSIN |
A- |
A- |
A- |
0 |
|
WYOMING |
A |
A+ |
A+ |
0 |
|
PUERTO RICO |
B |
B- |
B- |
0 |
|
*Previously reported incorrectly.
2010 Data
2009 Data
2007 Data
