The hits just keep on coming in the Texas v California debate. I love the fact that the Texas legislature only meets in odd number years and for 140 days at a time. If they aren’t meeting they can’t pass laws. From Tom Patterson of the  The East Valley Tribune:

Why does Texas thrive while California flounders? Gov. Rick Perry sums up the Texas philosophy as “Don’t spend all the money.” This governor, unlike the tax-and-spendaholic Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, added to his hard-line reputation by recently vetoing a pre-kindergarten spending bill. While California grovels for money, Texas recently turned down a $556 million unemployment fund subsidy from the feds because the expensive strings attached would have boosted state spending long after the “stimulus” money left.

Spending discipline is the key to Texas’ low, economy-boosting taxes. Not only do Texans lack steeply progressive taxes, they pay no state income tax at all.

Yet somehow, in spite of a penurious government, the state not only survives but prospers. As Perry explains, economies grow when governments “don’t spend all the money, keep taxes low, have a fair and predictable regulatory climate, keep frivolous lawsuits to a minimum and fund an accountable education system . . . then get the hell out of the way and let the private sector do what the private sector does best.”

Even Perry admits that’s easier said than done. In Texas, government is intentionally hobbled. The constitution permits only limited, specific powers. The governor’s powers are few and he must share authority with the lieutenant governor. Legislators’ salaries are a measly $7,200. The Texas Legislature meets only in odd-numbered years with a firm limit of 140 days. California legislators are the nation’s highest paid and they meet year-round. Texas’ state government is simply not able to be as intrusive and oppressive as are many other states.

The moment of truth for Texas came after the 2002 election, when outgoing Democrats went on a spending binge that left the state with a $10 billion deficit. Many clamored for a tax increase (sound familiar?), but Perry told the Legislature to not bother sending him one. Instead, they made deep across-the-board spending cuts. The results speak for themselves. Today, Texas has a $9 billion surplus to help it through the revenue shortfall all states are experiencing.

Now Arizona is facing crunch time. We can continue the tax-and-spend slide into economic decline. Let’s hope our leaders make the tough decisions that will keep our private sector strong and eventually get us out of this morass.