America as Texas vs. California

[BlueStateSaint]

Found this courtesy of Real Clear Politics.  Sums it up rather nicely . . .

America as Texas vs. California

By Ryan Streeter

November 23, 2009, 12:48 pm

New Geography, the online magazine created by Joel Kotkin and others with a special focus on demographics and trends, has been tracking the implosion of California in an interesting way:  by comparing it to Texas.

Texas and California are America’s two most populous states, together numbering approximately 55 million people, which is only about 6 million less than the United Kingdom, where I live.  California, as everyone knows, has a coolness factor that Texas cannot match.  Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and wine.  Say no more.  But, unless one has been living in a cave, everyone knows that the cool state is also the broke state.  If Hollywood turned California’s budget and fiscal position into a movie, it would be a blockbuster horror film indeed.

Texas, on the other hand, is growing, creating wealth, and attracting the entrepreneurial and creative classes that too many people think only go to places like New York and California.  This interesting post by Tory Gattis at New Geography explains why. He shares a four-point analysis from Trends magazine:

First, Texans on average believe in laissez-faire markets with an emphasis on individual responsibility.  Since the ’80s, California’s policy-makers have favored central planning solutions and a reliance on a government social safety net.  This unrelenting commitment to big government has led to a huge tax burden and triggered a mass exodus of jobs.  The Trends Editors examined the resulting migration in “Voting with Our Feet,” in the April 2008 issue of Trends.

Second, Californians have largely treated environmentalism as a “religious sacrament” rather than as one component among many in maximizing people’s quality of life.  As we explained in “The Road Ahead for Housing,” in the June 2009 issue of Trends, environmentally-based land-use restriction centered in California played a huge role in inflating the recent housing bubble.  Similarly, an unwillingness to manage ecology proactively for man’s benefit has been behind the recent epidemic of wildfires.

The rest is at:

http://blog.american.com/?p=7451

My money's on Texas.

[TheSarge]

For clarity's sake...we have a very healthy wine industry in Texas...our computer technology areas include D/FW...Ausitn and the Houston area...and Austin...Dallas...Houston are often used in movie locations.

Other than that the author is correct.  Texas has got it in spades over California.  Especially when you factor in cost of living...the business friendly climate of the state government and the fact we have no state income tax.

[Thor]

Not to burst any bubbles, but Texas ain't all it's cracked up to be, at least not any more. Texas ranks #2 as far as highest property tax rates in the nation when based on the home's value. Source

State sales tax is at 6.25%, but the different counties and cities add on to that. Locally, I'm paying 8.25% sales tax.

And as far as sales (for the shop owner) we pay 8.25% to the state on most things and 14% sales tax on liquor that's sold (mixed drinks, wine, beer)

My local city isn't doing JACK to acquire or "import" more industry or businesses. (That's a local problem, though) Pretty much, around here is either retail sales or service industry jobs. The oil fields are not operating, even though there's a BUNCH of oil available.

[bkg]

Not to burst any bubbles, but Texas ain't all it's cracked up to be, at least not any more. Texas ranks #2 as far as highest property tax rates in the nation when based on the home's value. Source

State sales tax is at 6.25%, but the different counties and cities add on to that. Locally, I'm paying 8.25% sales tax.

And as far as sales (for the shop owner) we pay 8.25% to the state on most things and 14% sales tax on liquor that's sold (mixed drinks, wine, beer)

My local city isn't doing JACK to acquire or "import" more industry or businesses. (That's a local problem, though) Pretty much, around here is either retail sales or service industry jobs. The oil fields are not operating, even though there's a BUNCH of oil available.

But....

As you know, you can deduct property taxes on your fed return, so I'd much rather have your property taxes than our (ever increasing) property taxes PLUS 6-9% in state income tax as well. Plus, you states that don't have income tax get to deduct your sales tax on your federal return, something I cannot do. Add to that the fact that I'm at 7.25% sales for most things, climbing as high as 11% downtown MPLS for alcohol, and you're still in a much, much better tax situation than many other states. Plus, you've created more jobs in the last two years than all other states combined.

My only real gripe about Texas, aside from the immigration from liberal states, is the inability/refusal to protect the border.