Maryland's reputation as a business-unfriendly state is hardly news. But perhaps that perception is changing.
 

The newly revived Maryland Business Climate Survey shows that senior executives at 250 businesses are feeling pretty good about the state's economy — so much so that they're planning to hire more people in the next year. The big problem with that plan is that they're having a tough time finding qualified workers. And of course, high taxes remain an issue for a majority of companies interviewed.
 

These are among the key findings of the 2018 survey released this week by the University of Baltimore Jacob France Institute and the nonpartisan Maryland Public Policy Institute. The climate survey hasn't been done since 2011 so the new results offer a glimpse into executives' minds post pro-business Gov. Larry Hogan's election.
 

Click through the slideshow above to see how business leaders responded.
 

"The survey finds that Maryland’s economy is well positioned to grow in the future provided that employers can find the right candidates for jobs,” said Richard Clinch, an economist and author of the survey. “Solving the workforce shortage and minimizing the negative impact of tax policy on businesses will be critical to Maryland’s economic strength moving forward."
 

Among the survey's key findings:

• The percentage of firms viewing Maryland as business-friendly increased from 22 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 to 47 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017. The percentage of businesses holding a negative view of the state’s business climate decreased from 43 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011, to 17 percent in this most recent survey.
   
• In the past year, 55 percent of business surveyed reported that their companies had experienced difficulties in obtaining workers with the skills necessary to fill specific job requirements.
   
• Sixty percent of the firms in the Washington suburbs have a positive view of the business climate while only 39 percent of firms in the Baltimore area view the business climate favorably. Forty-two percent of firms in the rest of the state have a favorable view.
   
• Some 63 percent of businesses surveyed report that taxes had at least some negative impact on their operations.
   

“The task before local, state and federal leaders is to create the conditions for entrepreneurs in all corners of the state to prosper and create jobs, not just the Washington suburbs,” said Christopher B. Summers, CEO of the Maryland Public Policy Institute.
 

Summers said the survey is the first in what will be a quarterly survey of the state's economy and perception of Maryland as a place to do business.
 

To read the full survey, click here.