Dave Bond: State Again Losing Jobs, Talent, Capital to (Low-Taxing) Texas
Oklahoma again losing jobs, talent, capital to (low-taxing) Texas
BY DAVE BOND
Gene Perry: Slashing taxes further is not the path to a stronger economy
Apache Corp., based in Houston, Tex., announced today it is closing its Tulsa office. It appears this will result in Oklahoma losing approximately 160 jobs in the energy industry, which, while facing rough times the past few months, is typically a strong growth industry.
More info here from the Tulsa World‘s Rod Walton, News on 6, and the Red Dirt Report.
This is yet another example of how higher-tax states tend to lose out, over time, to more favorable low-tax locales. In Oklahoma’s experience, this has often meant losing educated talent to destinations south of the Red River.
Today’s Apache announcement is no isolated incident, nor is it unique to the Tulsa area. In the past few months, as oil prices have dropped, a number of energy industry companies have reduced or shut down operations in Oklahoma, shifting capital and workforce to Texas and Colorado, states that boast lower tax burdens on work and productivity.