Texas vs. California Update for January 8, 2013

Time for another look at the respective fortunes of the nation’s two biggest states:

  • Between 1992 and 2010, California lost $45.27 billion in income while Texas gained $24.94B. (Hat tip: Moe Lane.)
  • That’s one of the many reasons Texas has a $2.6 billion budget surplus.
  • California’s Attorney General imposes some strange language choices on a proposed pension reform initiative.
  • California Governor Jerry Brown to shift money from a green “cap and trade” fund to the high speed rail boondoggle. “Brown, et al., apparently believe that diverting cap-and-trade fees into the bullet train may buy enough time to move some dirt and lay some track, with the hope that once construction begins, it will create a moral/political commitment to complete the project. But the proposed diversion is more likely to be dumping more money into a bottomless rathole.”
  • Remember: Spending money on green boondoggles means less is available for paying for luxuries like heating classrooms in winter.
  • Desert Hot Springs inches closer to bankruptcy. They’ve already eliminated their fire department, owe $4 million from last year, and are expected to run out of money in April.
  • How the California city of Pacific Grove broke the law and ignored voter wishes to accumulate massive pension debts. “Pacific Grove now has a new unfunded pension deficit of about $45 million, in addition to the $20 million in pension bonds. The deficit grows at 7.5% per year (about $3.2 million compounding).” A neat trick for a city whose entire budget is around $12 million a year. The first in what promises to be a 7 part series.
  • Orange County employees enjoy a whole bunch of plush benefits.
  • There’s a movement afoot in California to replace seniority with performance for determining teacher layoffs. Another group wants to make it easier to fire sex offenders. Naturally teacher’s unions are opposing both. (Hat tip: TPPF.)
  • California declares war on hot sauce maker Sriracha.
  • Is California’s 10 day gun waiting period unconstitutional? (Hat tip: Shall Not Be Questioned.)
  • Restaurant chain Mimi’s Cafe relocates their headquarters from California to Texas.
  • There’s a lot of talk (not yet confirmed) that Vista Equity Partners is planning to move Active Network, Websense, and Omnitracs to Texas.
  • Evidently Los Angeles can no longer support a WNBA team. (Hat tip: Dwight.)
  • Allied Van Lines confirmed that Texas remained the number one destination for relocation in 2013.
  • 14 things non-Texans don’t understand.
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    One Response to “Texas vs. California Update for January 8, 2013”

    1. Dwight Brown says:

      “Restaurant chain Mimi’s Cafe relocates from California to Texas.”

      Having eaten in both Bob Evans and Mimi’s Cafe, “mismatch” is an understatement. I was unaware that Bob Evans had sold off Mimi’s – thanks for the heads-up – and $50 million seems really low.

      “Evidently Los Angeles can no longer support a WNBA team.”

      And neither could Houston, but it surprised me when I found out there’s a team in San Antonio. Shows how much I follow the WNBA.

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