North Dakota Ranks 1st in Nation for Construction

Maybe it seems like a ranking you would not necessarily want to celebrate, but North Dakota has owned it for five consecutive years running now. North Dakota is ranks first in the nation for construction as a share of its economy.

If you've ever driven down the road thinking how there's an awful lot of orange construction cones along the roads, you're not wrong. The state of North Dakota has a lot. So much so that construction counts for a higher percentage of the state's economy than any other state and has done so now for the last five years. This according to a report released by Associated Builders and Contractors.

Over the past year, an estimated $3.8 billion in construction made up 7.6 percent of the state's $50.3 billion gross domestic product. That number is slightly down from 7.7 percent in 2013 and 2014. Economist Bernard Markstein credited North Dakota's energy boom and relatively small economy (45th GDP in the nation) to its ranking.

Rounding out the top five states in this category were Hawaii, Montana, Wyoming, and Louisiana.

Let's be honest, if nothing else, it means we're working to get things done on our roads.

Source: Grand Forks Herald