Texans outdo California in this one key area.

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The Economy

California's economy is almost twice as big as Texas' ($4.08 trillion to $2.6 trillion).  . California also out taxes and outspends Texas in almost every category. They have different values and do different things in California and that's okay. It's interesting that the two states are often used for comparison's and frequently portrayed as polar opposite's, even though we have more in common than one might think.

Spending

So how is it possible that Texas could outspend California in one area? Well, consider the size and layout of the Lone Star State and you'll have your answer. Texas spends $836 dollars per resident while California spends $489 per resident on highways! Yup, it takes a lot of asphalt to cover all the roads needed in the Lone Star State.

Size

California runs about 155K square miles in land while Texas comes in about 261K. These figures do not include water, because we don't drive on water much. California also 38.7 million people versus 30.5 million for Texas. Due to California's population density public transport is more often utilized and funded to a greater degree than in Texas.

Necessary?  

Yes, Texas spending on highways is unavoidable. Whereas you can travel for hours in California and never know whether you're in a new city or not, in Texas you can drive for minutes and you're in barren areas with the next city 40 miles away. This means we not only need the roads to get us from town to town, we need good roads to get us there.

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