Texas on top of best-performing city list

Texas dominated a prestigious national list of Best-Performing Cities, taking four of the top five positions and nine of the top 25 in the Milken Institute’s annual index.

The Governor’s office says the strong performance is thanks to the state’s healthy economy and robust job creation climate.

“I’m proud of the environment we’ve created in Texas that allows employers to risk their capital, receive a return on their investment and create jobs, thanks to our low taxes, reasonable and predictable regulatory environment, fair legal system and skilled workforce,” Gov. Rick Perry said. “Each of these cities highlights the reasons Texas is the best place to live, work and raise a family, and I congratulate them on this recognition.”

The factors that determine the list are  job, wage and technology performance over a five-year period. The study found that Texas employers were responsible for one of every five jobs created in the nation from June 2010 to June 2011.

San Antonio was the top performer among the nation’s 200 Best-Performing large metros, and Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown ranked number one among the 10 largest metros.

The study attributes Texas’ success to having a favorable business climate, low business costs, renewed trade with Mexico and South America, and ongoing energy exploration and alternative fuels research.

According to USA Today, Texas has moved past New York as the nation’s second largest economy, and the Wall Street Journal has credited the state’s low taxes and employer-friendly environment with helping make Texas the job creation capital of the nation. Additionally, Texas is ranked as the top exporting state in the nation for the ninth year in a row, and Texas consistently ranks among the top states for Fortune 500 headquarters.