The gist
On April 18, Hegar spoke to Pearland business leaders at the State of the Texas Economy event hosted by the Pearland Chamber of Commerce.
Hegar highlighted the growth of Texas's economy since he assumed office in 2015. At that time, Texas’s economy was ranked No. 12 in the world, but it has since climbed the ranks and landed in the top 10, Hegar said.
“Fast-forward a couple of years, and I couldn’t tell people we were No. 12 because we went to No. 11, and eventually I had to stop saying No. 11 because we moved to No. 10,” Hegar said. “Then I had to stop saying No. 10 because we moved to No. 9, and then here last year, I could tell people we are the eighth largest economy in the entire world.”
What else?
Hegar also praised the ethnic diversity of some counties in Texas and said Texas is a place where the international community wants to do business and find economic opportunities for themselves and future generations.
“Fort Bend County is not just one of the most ethnically diverse counties in Texas; it’s literally one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the entire nation,” Hegar said.
By the numbers
Hegar discussed what it was like to work with legislators to create the state’s $321.3 billion budget with a $32.7 billion surplus during the 88th Texas legislative session in 2023.
“We had never had anything like that in Texas history,” Hegar said. “It was unprecedented.”
Due to inflation, the state could collect more in sales tax, which is 59% of the comptroller’s total tax collection, leaving the treasury with more money than anticipated, Hegar said.
Looking ahead
The legislator will be able to set the funds aside in the state treasury for future use, Hegar said.
“I would tell them that we’ll probably have [more than] $19 billion left over, and that doesn’t include our economic stabilization fund or rainy day fund ... [which also has] $19 billion,” Hegar said.
