Perry Campaign Press Release - Rick Perry: Job Creators Pick Texas

Gov. Perry submitted this op-ed, which appeared in USA Today

Since June 2009, nearly 40% of the net new jobs in America have been created in Texas, and those jobs are being created in a climate that actually encourages such growth. While it is true that Texas also created jobs in previous decades, so did the nation. But since I became Texas governor in December 2000, Texas has added more than 1 million net new jobs while the rest of the nation has lost nearly 2.5 million jobs.

In his Aug. 17 speech to the Midland Community Forum,Richard Fisher, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, made an important distinction between Texas and the rest of the nation, saying: "Texas, like all states, is subject to the same monetary policy as all the rest: We have the same interest rates and access to capital as the residents of any of the other 49 states, for the Federal Reserve conducts monetary policy and regulates financial institutions under its purview for the nation at large. From this, I draw the conclusion that private sector capital and jobs will go to where taxes and spending and regulatory policy are most conducive to growth."

Employers and jobs are coming to Texas in droves. So are people looking for work, as the Texas labor force has increased by more than 700,000 since the recession began. Today, Texas employment is at near-record highs, and workers are employed in high quality jobs with companies such as eBay, Facebook, Toyota, Caterpillar — all of which have expanded in Texas in recent years.

The people whose opinion really matters on this issue are the job creators themselves. I put significant stock in opinion of 550 business leaders who ranked Texas No. 1 for job growth and business development for the seventh year in a row. Polled by Chief Executive on factors that include fair and predictable taxation and regulation, they voted Texas to the top of their list.

I believe this common-sense model will benefit our nation: Control spending, keep regulations fair and predictable, and simplify the tax code to once again spark job creation. The alternative is economic ruin.