State economic officials are pleased with Missouri’s standing in a ranking of state business climates. The Small Business Survival Index, put out by the Washington-based Small Business Survival Committee, ranks Missouri seventeenth. Economic Development Director Joe Driskill says this is further proof that Missouri is a good place in which to do business. The survey takes into account such factors as taxes, electricity costs, crime rates, number of bureaucrats, and state minimum wages. Driskill says all factors are important, but taxation levels are extremely important. He says, on the whole, Missouri is doing a good job of attracting businesses – big and small.