Three Midwest states are among the most-improved in this year’s rankings from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, while Minnesota leads the region.

The report ranks the states according to six policy metrics, including incentives, building codes, transportation policies, and efficiency standards. Individual state rankings are on the map below:

Meanwhile, the full report (PDF) has a breakdown of each state’s score.

Michigan’s ranking improved more than any other state, thanks in large part to an aggressive appliance buy-back program, according to the Detroit Free Press. Illinois’ jump was the second largest, followed by Nebraska.

Wisconsin, meanwhile, dropped five places in part because of efforts to roll back funding for the state’s Focus on Energy program, reports Thomas Content of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

And North Dakota, once again, ranks dead last.

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.