Utah ranks 27th in survey of 'cyberstates'

State boasted 49,300 technology jobs in 2004

Deseret Morning News and wire reports
Published: Wednesday, April 19, 2006 4:33 p.m. MDT
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Utah's high-tech industry added 800 net jobs in 2004, giving the state a total of 49,300 technology jobs for a rank of 27th in an annual national survey.

The American Electronics Association (AeA) ranked the states' technology industries Wednesday in its annual report "Cyberstates 2006: A Complete State-by-State Overview of the High-Technology Industry."

The report said Utah ranked 13th in software publishers employment with 4,700 jobs, and the state's venture capital investments jumped by 23 percent in 2005, to $248 million.

"Both the recent job growth and the surge in venture capital investments are strong signs that the tech industry is strengthening in Utah," said Jessica Wright, executive director of the AeA Mountain States Council, in a prepared statement. "Utah's strong work ethic and high level of education make it an attractive location for technology companies to develop new products and techniques."

The report said Utah exported $990 million in high-tech goods in 2005, ranked 32nd nationwide. It also showed:

  • Utah high-tech firms employed 56 of every 1,000 private sector workers in 2004, ranked 17th nationwide.

  • High-tech workers earned an average wage of $55,800 (36th ranked), or 77 percent more than Utah's average private sector wage.

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  • The state's high-tech payroll of $2.8 billion in 2004 ranked 27th nationwide.

Nationally, the AeA study shows that the high-tech industry added 61,100 net jobs for a total of 5.6 million workers in 2005, the first increase in tech jobs in four years. U.S. high-tech exports also rose 4 percent to $199 billion in 2005.

Despite losing 10,600 technology jobs in 2004, California remained the nation's tech leader, according to the AeA survey. In fact, California solidified its status as the nation's high-tech colossus, leading nearly every category in the Cyberstates report.

Matthew Kazmierczak, the AeA's vice president of research, said the state's lag in new job creation in 2004 wasn't surprising because California is so heavily involved in technology that the state was "really hurt by the tech downturn, so it took longer to come out of it."

While many of the statistics suggest a tech rebound is well under way, a big boost in venture capital funding in 2005 suggests California can expect further robust growth, said the AeA's Kazmierczak. Investors plunged $10.4 billion into California firms in 2005, up from $10 billion in 2004 and $8.5 billion in 2003.

The 2005 figure outstrips the $2.4 billion that went to firms in No. 2 Massachusetts last year.

Kazmierczak said such funding shows fundamental investor confidence in California tech firms and employees.

"The venture capitalists recognize quality workers and are attracted to locations with access to those workers," he said.

Contributing: Clint Swett, Sacramento Bee; Greg Kratz

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