It’s been called the “Texas Miracle,” the notion that the Texas economy can weather any storm and will continue to sail smoothly while other states flounder.
But now, according to a prominent expert on the Texas economy, that miracle may have come to an end.
In an editorial in The New York Times, Richard Parker accused what he called the “dysfunctional, ideologically driven State Legislature” of enacting policies that have wounded the thriving Texas economy. Parker says that rising energy prices after the fracking boom caused Texas leaders to take their hands off the wheel, allowing for unchecked sprawl along the coast. Years of inept lawmaking culminated in a legislative session dominated by squabbling over who gets to use which bathroom.
And now, declining energy revenues are leaving Texans without any recourse in Austin. There is a silver lining, says Parker.
“It finally seems to be dawning on people that low taxes, less regulation and more oil are no substitute for actually governing," he said.