Bessent Says Texas Overtook California as U.S. Center of Gravity, Drawing 230 HQ Moves
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 12
Bessent Says Texas Overtook California as U.S. Center of Gravity, Drawing 230 HQ Moves
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 12
Summary
At a Houston meeting Friday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent cast Texas as the new U.S. economic hub, arguing California’s taxes and regulation have produced a "tale of two states."
230 of the 725 U.S. headquarters relocations tracked from 2018 to 2025 went to Houston, Dallas and Austin, while IRS data showed Texas gained a net 56,000 tax filers from 2022 to 2023.
Bessent pointed to Chevron, Tesla, Charles Schwab and Hewlett Packard Enterprise as examples of companies leaving California, where he said environmental rules, lawsuits and delayed projects deter business.
Texas’s edge, he said, also rests on energy abundance: the state recently surpassed California in utility-scale solar capacity and hit record levels in crude oil output and low-carbon electricity generation.
Is the corporate exodus from California to Texas a short-term reaction or the beginning of a permanent shift in America's economic geography?
California bets on green regulations while Texas champions deregulation. Which state's economic model will ultimately prove more successful and sustainable?