FIELD NOTES
ECONOMY
The Texas Way of Inclusive Capitalism story by W. MICHAEL COX
AND
RICHARD ALM
T
the u.s. census released this summer put Texas’ population at 29.1 million—up 4 million since 2010, more than any other state. One part of the latest headcount stood out: People of color accounted for a staggering 95 percent of the state’s population growth over the past decade. The state’s fastest-growing ethnic group, Hispanics, made up 40.1 percent of the population in 2020, just slightly below the 40.6 percent for Whites. Blacks were at 12.1 percent and Asian-Americans (and others) at 7.2 percent (see chart). As their numbers increase, racial and ethnic groups are becoming even more important to Texas’ economic fortunes. The state will need an ever-expanding labor supply if it wants to remain among the leaders in growth and job creation; non-Whites will be filling most of those jobs. Regular readers of this column will be familiar with the Texas model of economic freedom, the shorthand for a regime of low taxes and light regulation that for decades has empowered the private sector. The model served the state well over
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P H OTO G R A P H Y BY P I X E L S T O R I E S ; C H A R T S O U R C E S M U C O X S C H O O L O F B U S I N E S S
The state’s growth is being driven by people of color; here’s how economic freedom benefits us all.
DCEOMAGAZINE.COM
10/28/21 11:42 AM
