New Hampshire is the third safest state in America, new data analysis finds, and that includes personal, economic, and health safety, too. The state’s ranking rose from eighth place just last year.

The report, released by Wallethub Tuesday morning, ranks the Granite State fourth in personal safety, tenth in road safety, and number one in financial safety. The data analysis company used metrics including:

— Fewest assaults per capita (#2)

— Fewest deaths per miles driven (#5)

— Fewest workplace fatalities per capita (#1)

— Lowest unemployment (tied for #1)

 

 

Not that New Hampshire has a perfect record. The state ranks among the worst for bullying of school kids (#46), and while its tenth-place ranking for the percentage of the population that’s fully vaccinated is high, it’s the lowest in New England.

A key reason for the state’s high ranking, Wallethub analyst Jill Gonzalez tells NHJournal, is its strong economic performance.
“New Hampshire topped the other states in financial safety. Its unemployment rate is just 2.9 percent, it has the lowest poverty rate in the country, 7.6 percent, and the lowest share of unbanked households, less than 1 percent. More than 73 percent of the state’s households have an emergency fund, and it registered one of the lowest numbers of personal bankruptcy filings per capita,” Gonzales said.

New Hampshire’s high safety numbers highlight yet again an inconvenient truth for advocates of more aggressive gun laws: Four of the five safest states also have few restrictions on gun ownership, including allowing “constitutional carry” of a handgun. New Hampshire has among the highest rates of gun ownership and had the lowest homicide rate in the nation last year.

All four members of New Hampshire’s congressional delegation support a federal ban on the sale of popular rifles like AR-15s.