News Provided by Site Selection Magazine
March, 1, 2023
Texas Claims 11th Consecutive Governor’s Cup
Texas Claims 11th Consecutive Governor’s Cup
For the 11th year in a row, Texas claims the Governor’s Cup for total qualified projects. That’s not really a stretch when you consider the Lone Star State’s economy is larger than that of Canada, South Korea and Australia. If it were a nation, it would be the 9th largest by GDP. Texas’ workforce is more than 14.5 million strong, and it’s home to 271 corporate headquarter relocations since 2015, the same year Greg Abbott became the 48th governor of Texas.
In February, Site Selection conducted an email interview with the governor to get his take on Texas’ success, the issues at play in 2023 and what lies ahead on the Texas economic landscape.
Congratulations on claiming Texas’ 11th consecutive Governor’s Cup. Your thoughts?
Gov. Abbott: Thank you. I am proud to once again accept the Governor’s Cup from Site Selection Magazine, recognizing Texas as the nation’s leader in attracting job-creating business investments from across the country and around the world to our great state.
When choosing where to relocate or expand their businesses, more and more entrepreneurs and business leaders find themselves here in Texas. They recognize the competitive business advantages found only in Texas. And they are in good company. Texas is the headquarters of headquarters. We’re now home to more Fortune 500 company headquarters than any other state in the nation, along with hundreds of publicly traded firms and over 3 million small businesses and startups.
I congratulate the exceptional economic development teams at the local, regional, and state level who work so diligently to attract and retain these growing businesses and the jobs they create in communities across Texas. As we celebrate 11 years of excellence with another Governor’s Cup win, we look to the future. Working together, we will build the Texas of tomorrow.
You mentioned in your State of the State address that to keep Texas the best state for business, your local communities need new economic development tools this session. Which tools do you want to make available?
Gov. Abbott: Texas leads the nation in attracting job-creating relocation and expansion projects, winning the Governor’s Cup every year that I’ve been Governor. There are several programs within my Economic Development & Tourism Office that focus on attracting new jobs, capital investment, and visitors to Texas. Together with local and regional economic development partners, these initiatives have helped make Texas the national leader for economic growth and job creation.
But we cannot be complacent. Texas must remain a leader in our country and across the globe by continuing to lead with major capital investments in critical industries such as advanced manufacturing and energy production, specifically from companies like Samsung, Texas Instruments, and Tesla. The “Texas Miracle” has remained a strong beacon thanks to a talented workforce, robust infrastructure, innovative technology development, and a business-friendly regulatory environment.
In order for Texas to remain the economic engine of the nation, we must continue to work collaboratively with local economic development organizations and business communities and maintain strategic economic development tools needed to attract the top businesses to the state.
“When choosing where to relocate or expand their businesses, more and more entrepreneurs and business leaders find themselves here in Texas. They recognize the competitive business advantages found only in Texas. And they are in good company. Texas is the headquarters of headquarters.”
— Texas Governor Greg Abbott
I look forward to working with the Texas House and Senate this session to develop new economic development tools to continue attracting major capital investment and manufacturing to Texas while also incentivizing the creation of new energy production.
You also said in your address that local businesses will flourish even more if we reduce the gridlock in our courts by creating specialized courts with the expertise to deal with complex commercial litigation. Do you anticipate any opposition to this?
Gov. Abbott: Creating a specialized court to handle complex commercial litigation in Texas will further strengthen our ranking as the best state in the nation to do business. Texas already has over 200 specialized courts at the trial level, including courts designated to hear probate, juvenile, veterans and family law matters. Having judges that specialize in complex areas of commercial litigation will create more predictability in Texas law and free up the dockets of general jurisdiction courts in Texas.
You’ve said your goal is to ensure that every Texan is prepared to succeed in high-demand industries like technology, healthcare, and energy and that in this legislative session Texas will reward community colleges that produce skilled, employable Texans. How will this work?
Gov. Abbott: To meet the needs of a growing economy, Texas must have a regular pipeline of skilled workers. Texas is already investing heavily in reskilling and upskilling programs to bolster our job training programs and prepare Texans to excel in good-paying careers. We are giving students the ability to walk out of these programs into a good-paying career that can help them support their family and contribute to their community.
Community colleges play an integral role by providing credentialing and certification options. The Texas Commission on Community College Finance (TXCCCF) developed recommendations that are aligned with workforce needs through performance-based funding, access to financial aid, and startup grants for high-demand programs to quickly meet the needs of communities and Texas.
Texas can lead the nation in moving to a performance-based funding system for community colleges. The need for skilled labor has never been greater. Working with the Legislature, we can provide the resources necessary to fully implement the TXCCCF recommendations.
You have identified cutting property taxes as a legislative priority in the legislature this year. What else is on your agenda?
Gov. Abbott: Thanks to hardworking Texans, our $2 trillion economy is the ninth-largest economy in the world. We also lead the nation in energy production, exports, and high-tech exports. Our robust and growing Texas economy has produced another record: We now have the largest budget surplus in the history of Texas. But that money does not belong to the government. It belongs to the taxpayers.
We will use that budget surplus to provide the largest property tax cut in Texas history. While we have passed property tax reform every session I’ve been Governor, there is more we can do to provide even more lasting tax relief to homeowners and businesses across the state.
“We now have the largest budget surplus in the history of Texas. But that money does not belong to the government. It belongs to the taxpayers.”
— Texas Governor Greg Abbott
In my budget, I have proposed using $15 billion of the budget surplus to cut property taxes. The House and Senate have also made the same proposals. We must now ensure that it provides lasting property tax relief. We must also provide relief to small businesses by increasing the business personal property tax exemption and require local government debt be passed by a two-thirds supermajority of the local governing body.
With Texas doing so well financially, is there pressure to scale back on incentives for major projects?
Gov. Abbott: We must use every tool in the toolbox to help communities across our great state attract capital-intensive expansion and relocation projects that create good-paying jobs in the industries that are critical for the future of our state and our nation, especially in the advanced manufacturing, energy, and semiconductor industries.
What impact is the border crisis having on companies wanting south Texas locations? The stress on public services and resources must be on their minds.
Gov. Abbott: Because of President Biden’s refusal to secure our nation’s southern border, every community is a border community. Texas has already seized enough fentanyl to have killed every man, woman, and child in America. Until the Biden Administration steps up and secures the border, Texas will continue taking unprecedented action to protect our communities and stop the smuggling of deadly drugs, weapons and people into Texas.
Can you speak to water supply in Texas, an issue many states are grappling with?
Gov. Abbott: Over the last decade, Texas has made significant investments in road, water, and energy infrastructure. As our state gains more than 1,000 people a day, a strategy to expand and improve the state’s infrastructure is crucial. With a historic surplus, there is no better time to consider capital investments to fuel the growing economy and ensure Texans can efficiently get to-and-from work and school, have clean drinking water, connect to broadband internet, and access affordable and reliable energy.
“Over the last decade, Texas has made significant investments in road, water, and energy infrastructure. As our state gains more than 1,000 people a day, a strategy to expand and improve the state’s infrastructure is crucial.”
— Texas Governor Greg Abbott
The State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) has already fast-tracked state water plan projects by offering a unique and cost-effective financial assistance avenue. Over the next 50 years, the original $2 billion appropriation will be leveraged with revenue bonds to finance approximately $27 billion in water supply projects. With nearly $10 billion committed to-date, I look forward to working with the Texas Legislature to allocate additional funds to SWIFT and other state-funding mechanisms.
Read more: https://siteselection.com/issues/2023/mar/the-2023-governors-cups.cfm
