State Regulation Comparison

Do the states that regulate the most also regulate the hardest? Not always. Quantity and strictness are different dimensions of regulatory activity. Regulations are tracked across all 50 states, with data from state legislatures, NCSL, and IAPP; see our methodology.

Regulatory quantity measures how many laws a state has enacted across tracked categories. Regulatory strictness measures the depth and enforcement teeth of those laws — penalties, private rights of action, enforcement mechanisms, and scope of coverage. A state can have many regulations that are narrowly scoped with modest penalties, or fewer regulations that are comprehensive and heavily enforced. Understanding the difference matters for compliance planning.

Most Regulated (by count)

Highest total regulations enacted

  1. 1 California 12 regs
  2. 2 Illinois 9 regs
  3. 3 Colorado 8 regs
  4. 4 New York 8 regs
  5. 5 Oregon 8 regs
  6. 6 Washington 7 regs
  7. 7 Connecticut 6 regs
  8. 8 Massachusetts 6 regs
  9. 9 Minnesota 5 regs
  10. 10 Texas 5 regs

Strictest States (by score)

Highest regulatory strictness scores

  1. 1 California 100 pts
  2. 2 Colorado 76 pts
  3. 3 Texas 69 pts
  4. 4 Connecticut 62 pts
  5. 5 Illinois 62 pts
  6. 6 Minnesota 62 pts
  7. 7 New York 62 pts
  8. 8 Oregon 62 pts
  9. 9 Washington 62 pts
  10. 10 Delaware 59 pts

Key Takeaways

  • States like California appear near the top of both lists — they regulate broadly and deeply
  • Some states rank high on count but lower on strictness, indicating many narrowly-targeted laws without heavy enforcement
  • Smaller states may rank low on quantity but have strict requirements in specific categories they choose to regulate
  • Regulatory diversity (covering more categories) does not automatically mean regulatory strictness
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