Texas Leads Nation in Jobs Added

The Lone Star State continues to lead the nation in jobs added with 58,200 new positions in February, bringing the state to nearly 14 million total nonfarm jobs, according to the Texas Workforce Commission. February also marked two full years of uninterrupted job growth in the state.

“The past 24 months of uninterrupted job growth show the strength of the Texas economy and ongoing economic opportunities for Texans,” said TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel.

The state’s jobless rate in February was 4.5%, which is higher than the national rate of 3.9%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The highest jobless rate in a Texas metropolitan statistical area is 6.8% in McAllen-Edinburgh-Mission. The lowest rate in an MSA is 3.0% in Midland.

Rainy Day Fund Hits Cap for First Time

The state’s piggy bank is nearly full. Comptroller Glenn Hegar predicts the state’s so-called Rainy Day Fund, officially the Economic Stabilization Fund, will reach its statutory limit by 2025, which is 10% of what is deposited in the General Revenue Fund. Rising revenues fueled by spikes in energy prices and inflation have filled the state’s coffers, Hegar said. “The revenue increases that we have seen truly have been historical and unprecedented. We have never seen anything like this in the past, and I don’t think we’ll see anything like this in the future,” he said. The state experienced record growth in tax collections in 2022 of 25.6% from the previous year, filling the state’s coffers with a surplus of $32.7 billion.

“I am glad to see that lawmakers are giving careful thought to how this tremendous asset can be best put to work for Texans,” Hegar added.