The future of Texas has never been brighter. As the LoneStarState breaks record after record for economic growth and innovation, state leaders are providing the opportunity, workforce, infrastructure, resources and freedom to deliver the dream of a Texas-sized tomorrow.
World-class businesses are investing in South Texas, attracted by the young, skilled and growing work force in the Rio GrandeValley. South Korea’s LS Mtron, a maker of injection molding machines, is expanding its U.S. operations with a new center in Brownsville. Johnson Controls is opening a new industrial manufacturing facility in Weslaco that will create 100 new jobs.
Texas is the new headquarter of headquarters. Our pro-business policies have catapulted relocations of businesses large and small. Since I took office in 2015, more than 260 businesses have relocated their headquarters to Texas. As the world’s ninth-largest economy, Texas has earned the title of BestState for Business for a record-breaking 18 years in a row. This extraordinary economic growth puts more Texans on the path to prosperity through higher wages and unprecedented opportunities for advancement.
More Texans are working than ever before. That opportunity awaits anyone looking for it. We are home to 20% of the nation’s Hispanic business owners, one in 10 Black business owners, and 1.25 million women business owners. In fact, Texas ranks among the top states for women-led startups.
Business leaders across the globe recognize the highly skilled, talented workforce that makes Texas second to none. That workforce is bolstered with career-training programs such our Jobs and Education for Texans Grant Program that goes to public high schools and community and technical colleges to prepare students for high-demand careers in emerging industries.
With per-student funding for public schools now at an all-time high, young Texans are on track for more promising futures than ever. Texas is No. 1 in America for Blue Ribbon schools and Tier One research universities. We will combine that success with transformative educational reforms to ensure students are ready to successfully enter the workforce or go to college. Importantly, we will ensure parents remain the primary decision makers in their child’s education for the brightest future possible.
To meet the needs of our thriving state, we must build infrastructure for the future. Whether it’s committing nearly $10 billion in low-interest loans to communities for water supply projects through the Statewide Water Implementation Fund for Texas, or the Governor’s Broadband Development Council working to address broadband access in rural areas, the state of Texas is laying the foundation for lasting progress.
Access to health care remains a top priority for our growing state. DHR Health’s Level 1 Trauma Center in Edinburg recently celebrated its one-year designation anniversary. Prior to DHR Health’s designation, the closest Level 1 Trauma facility was 240 miles away in San Antonio.
Texans deserve to feel safe in their communities. President Biden’s reckless border policies jeopardize the security of not only Texas, but the entire nation. Since I launched Operation Lone Star in March 2021, the unprecedented border security mission has led to more than 336,000 migrant apprehensions, and the seizure of enough fentanyl to kill every man, woman and child in America.
Texas is aggressively combating the deadly scourge of fentanyl poisonings, which is now the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18-45. I designated Mexican drug cartels that smuggle fentanyl as terrorist organizations and signed a law that makes it a felony to make or distribute fentanyl. And, this fall, the state of Texas launched a comprehensive “One Pill Kills” campaign to raise public awareness of fentanyl’s deadly impact.
Texans’ famed ingenuity is leading the fight in this national crisis. Researchers at the University of Houston developed a groundbreaking fentanyl vaccine with the potential to save millions of lives. This upcoming session, lawmakers will consider additional laws to protect Texans from deadly fentanyl pouring across our border.
As we enter 2023 with an unprecedented budget surplus, we must seize the opportunity to provide Texans with desperately needed property tax relief. Recent property tax reforms laid the foundation to help overburdened property owners with their tax bills. I will work with lawmakers this session on the best strategy to provide the largest property tax cut in Texas history.
Whether it’s economic opportunity or policies ensuring our continued freedom and prosperity, Texas leads the nation. With the grit and determination Texans are known for, we will continue to confront any challenges that lay ahead as our great state continues upholding the American dream.
Greg Abbott is governor of Texas.
