Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX), since he launched his presidential campaign on Saturday, has paraded around the stat that “since June of 2009, Texas is responsible for more than 40 percent of all of the new jobs created in America.” Gov. Perry says he wants conservative governance to do for America what it has done for Texas. All of the Republican presidential candidates tout no taxes and no government as good for America. So, what has conservative governance given Texas?
Stellar job growth?
Between 2008 and 2010, jobs actually grew at a faster pace in Massachusetts than in Texas.
In fact, “Texas has done worse than the rest of the country since the peak of national unemployment in October 2009.”
The unemployment rate in Texas has been steadily increasing throughout the recession, and went from 7.7 to 8.2 percent while the state was supposedly creating 40 percent of all the new jobs in the U.S.
How is this possible, since Texas has created over 126,000 jobs since the depths of the recession in February 2009? The fact of the matter is that looking purely at job creation misses a key point, namely that Texas has also experienced population and labor force growth [unequaled in other states. A series of factors also come into play, including that Texas weathered the housing bubble reasonably well due to strict state of Texas mortgage lending "government regulations."] When this is taken into account, Texas’ job creation looks decidedly less impressive:
As Paul Krugman put it, “several factors underlie [Texas'] rapid population growth: a high birth rate, immigration from Mexico, and inward migration of Americans from other states," and more...
A Report from the Texas Legislative Study Group On the State of Our State released in February 2011, at the start of the 82nd Regular Session of the Texas Legislature, assesses Texas' ranking in a number of categories. According to the Study Group's report Texas ranks last in almost every category:
Education (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Public School Enrollment | 2nd |
• Average Salary of Public School Teachers | 33rd |
• Average Teacher Salary as a Percentage of Average Annual Pay | 34th |
• Current Expenditures per Student | 38th |
• State & Local Expenditures per Pupil in Public Schools | 44th |
• State Aid Per Pupil in Average Daily Attendance | 47th |
• Percent of Elementary/Secondary School Funding from State Revenue | 37th |
• Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) Scores | 45th |
• Percent of Population 25 and Older with a High School Diploma | 50th |
• High School Graduation Rate | 43rd |
• Percent of Adults with at Least a Bachelor’s Degree | 31st |
• Percentage of Higher Education Enrollment | 9th |
• Per Capita State Spending on State Arts Agencies | 43rd |
State of the Child (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Birth Rate | 2nd |
• Percent of Population Under 18 | 2nd |
• Percent of Uninsured Children | 1st |
• Percent of Children Living in Poverty | 4th |
• Percent of Children Fully Immunized | 34th |
• Percent of Children Overweight | 19th |
Health Care (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Percent of Population Uninsured | 1st |
• Percent of Non-Elderly Uninsured | 1st |
• Percent of Low Income Population Covered by Medicaid | 49th |
• Percent of Population with Employer-Based Health Insurance | 48th |
• Total State Government Health Expenditures as Percent of the Gross State Product | 43rd |
• Per Capita State Spending on Mental Health | 50th |
• Per Capita State Spending on Medicaid | 49th |
• Percent of Population Physically Active | 36th |
• Health Care Expenditures per Capita | 44th |
• Hospital Beds per 1,000 Population | 27th |
Health Professionals per Capita: |
|
• Physicians | 42nd |
• Dentists | 39th |
• Registered Nurses | 44th |
Health and Well-Being (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Percent Living Below Federal Poverty Level | 4th |
• Percent of Population with Food Insecurity | 2nd |
• Average Monthly Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) Benefits per Person | 47th |
• Prevalence of Obesity in Adults | 16th |
• Rate of Death due to Heart Disease | 22nd |
• Prevalence of Diagnosed Diabetes | 14th |
• Diabetes Death Rate | 16th |
• Percent of Population Who Visit the Dentist | 46th |
Women's Issues (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Overall Birth Rate | 2nd |
• Teenage Birth Rate | 7th |
• Births to Unmarried Mothers | 17th |
• Percent of Women with Pre-Term Birth | 9th |
• Percent of Non-Elderly Women with Health Insurance | 50th |
• Percent of Women Who have had a Dental Visit within the Past Year | 45th |
• Rate of Women Aged 40+ Who Receive Mammograms | 40th |
• Rate of Women Aged 18+ Who Receive Pap Smears | 37th |
• Breast Cancer Rate | 42nd |
• Cervical Cancer Rate | 11th |
• Percent of Women with High Blood Pressure | 16th |
• Family Planning | 37th |
• Percent of Pregnant Women Receiving Prenatal Care in First Trimester | 50th |
• Women's Voter Registration | 45th |
• Women's Voter Turnout | 49th |
• Percent of Women Living in Poverty | 6th |
• Percentage of Women with Four or More Years of College | 30th |
• Percent of Businesses Owned by Women | 17th |
• Percent of Median Income for Full Time Work | 26th |
Access to Capital (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Percent of Mortgage Loans that are Subprime | 9th |
• Mortgage Debt as Percent of Home Value | 47th |
• Foreclosure Rates | 10th |
• Private Loans to Small Businesses | 30th |
• Asset Poverty Rate | 36th |
• Median Net Worth of Households | 47th |
• Average Credit Score | 49th |
• Retirement Plan Participation | 47th |
• Median Credit Card Debt | 19th |
• Average Credit Score | 49th |
Environment (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Amount of Carbon Dioxide Emissions | 1st |
• Amount of Volatile Organic Compounds Released into Air | 1st |
• Amount of Toxic Chemicals Released into Water | 1st |
• Amount of Recognized Cancer-Causing Carcinogens Released into Air | 1st |
• Amount of Hazardous Waste Generated | 1st |
• Amount of Toxic Chemicals Released into Air | 5th |
• Amount of Recognized Cancer-Causing Carcinogens Released into Water | 7th |
• Number of Hazardous Waste Sites on National Priority List | 7th |
• Consumption of Energy per Capita | 5th |
Workforce (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Average Hourly Earnings of Production Workers on Manufacturing Payrolls | 38th |
• Government Employee Wages and Salaries | 24th |
• Percent of Workforce that are Members of a Union | 41st |
• Workers' Compensation Coverage | 50th |
Quality of Life (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Income Inequality Between the Rich and the Poor | 9th |
• Income Inequality Between the Rich and the Middle Class | 5th |
• Median Household Income | 34th |
• Home Ownership Rate | 44th |
• Homeowner’s Insurance Affordability | 46th |
• Auto Insurance Affordability | 24th |
• Personal Bankruptcy Filings Rate, Per Capita | 39th |
• Percent of Households with Internet Access | 42nd |
Democracy (50th=Lowest, 1st=Highest) |
|
• Percent of Voting-Age Population that is Registered to Vote | 43rd |
• Percent of Voting-Age Population that Votes | 45th |
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