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Demography
Demographers predicted that by the early twenty-first century, Anglos would comprise less than
half of the Texas population. The most significant change in Texas population was the dramatic
increase in Hispanics, a trend that will continue in the first two decades of the twenty-first century.
The Immigration and Reform Control Act of 1986 offered amnesty to Hispanics living illegally in
the United States prior to 1982. Efforts to stop illegal immigration across the Rio Grande were
unsuccessful. At the turn of the new century, the state was experiencing a "Texas Revolution in
reverse." "The political and cultural changes that are likely to occur as a result of this
Hispanicization of Texas may in some respects rival those that took place as a consequence of
the first Texas Revolution." The problems of poverty persisted. "In inner-city minority
neighborhoods and in the Rio Grande Valley, infant mortality rates approached those of some
Third World countries." While welfare rolls expanded, Texas ranked as one of the least generous
states in all categories of public assistance. In future years, governmental priorities may conflict
along race and ethnic lines. For example, young ethnics may wish to spend tax dollars on
education and job training, while aging Anglos may want lower taxes and better medical care.
Economy
In the 1970s and 1980s, Texas experienced a boom and bust economy caused by the
fluctuations in the price of oil. In the 1970s, conflicts in the Middle East limited the production of
oil, the price soared, and the Texas economy boomed based on oil revenues. When oil prices
collapsed in 1986, so did the Texas economy. In the 1990s, the economy slowly recovered and
diversified. Texas led all states in the number of new jobs created. Per capita income equaled
the national average for the first time in 1981. By 1999, Texas ranked twenty-eighth in per capita
income.
Texas Farmers
Farmers struggled to make a profit in the last decades of the 1900s. Cotton was the single most
valuable cultivated crop, but the value of all grains combined surpassed that of cotton. By 2000,
less than 3 percent of all employed adult Texans worked in agriculture, including forestry and
fisheries.
Urban Texas
The urban population in 1980 was 81.2 percent of the total, which exceeded the national average.
Dallas-Fort Worth was the state's largest metropolitan area, with Houston-Galveston-Brazoria
ranked second. Factors explaining the rapid urban growth included:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Open spaces surrounding cities
Proximity to Mexico made Texas cities logical destinations for Mexican immigrants.
New air facilities
Climate
From the 1970s to 2000 the suburbs had the greatest growth. The central cities continued to
grow, just not as fast as the suburbs. Suburban Texans depended on their cars, rather than
mass transit for commuting into the central cities.
Religion in Texas
Texans are a very religious people. In 1990, Texas led the nation in the number of churches and
church members. Nearly 65 percent of Texans said that they regularly attend church -- 10
percent more than the national average. The greatest change from 1970 was the increase in the
number of Roman Catholics which passed Southern Baptists as the largest individual
denomination. The Protestant Evangelical denominations grew faster than the mainline
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Protestant churches. A few of the urban evangelical congregations became megachurches with
tens of thousands of members. Fundamentalist congregations increased membership and
became politically active as the "religious right." Fundamentalists and other religious
conservatives became a part of a conservative coalition within the Republican party. They
opposed abortion rights, homosexual rights, the teaching of evolution, and the ordination of
women and homosexuals. They favored school prayer and a prominent role for religion in civic
life.
Texas Culture
The "Third Coast", symphony, opera, theater
Popular music: Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Jeff Walker, Progressive country, Austin
City Limits, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Nashville Sound, George Jones, Ray Price, Tanya Tucker,
Kenny Rogers, George Strait, ZZ Top, Steve Miller Band, Don Henley, Freddie Fender, Johnny
Rodriguez, Selena, Ornette Coleman
Larry McMurtry, Horton Foote, literature, newspapers, magazines, news reporters, historians
Sports and Leisure
Dallas Cowboys, Tom Landry, Jerry Jones, Jimmy Johnson
Houston Oilers, O. A. "Bum" Phillips, Earl Campbell
Texas Rangers, Houston Astros
Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Houston Comets
Dallas Stars
Lee Trevino, Ben Crenshaw, Payne Stewart, Harvey Penick
Ty Murray
George Foreman
Lance Armstrong
College sports: Title IX, University of Houston
Texas Motor Speedway
Texas Politics
The last three decades of the twentieth century marked the end of a century of Democratic
dominance, although Texas never ceased being a conservative state. "The liberalism of Lyndon
Johnson's presidency, with its embrace of civil rights and it war on poverty frightened
conservative Democrats and made the Republican party look increasingly attractive." In 1978,
Texans elected Dallas oilman William P. Clements as governor, the first Republican governor
since Reconstruction.
In 1982, Democrats elected a full slate of candidates: Mark White (Governor, conservative), Lloyd
Bentsen (United States Senator, conservative), Bill Hobby (Lieutenant Governor, moderate), Jim
Hightower (Commissioner of Agriculture, liberal), Ann Richards (State Treasurer, liberal), Jim
Mattox (Attorney General, liberal), and Gary Mauro (Land Commissioner, liberal). Despite his
conservative credentials, White convinced the legislature to pass a broad reform program. "The
Texas Observer described the governor as the most liberal chief executive of the last fifty years."
In 1986, Clements defeated White's bid for reelection. The low turnout in rural areas and among
minority voters, particularly Mexican Americans provided Clements's margin of victory.
Republican Phil Gramm replaced the retiring Republican United States Senator John Tower.
In the mid-1980s, the Democratic party "needed its traditional white East Texas voters, but at the
same time it also needed to mobilize voter turnout in the minority and low-income precincts,
where social issues were important concerns."
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In the presidential election of 1988, the Republican George H. W. Bush defeated a Democratic
ticket that included Lloyd Bentsen as the vice-presidential candidate.
In 1990, the Democrats won the governorship when Ann Richards defeated Clayton Williams, a
Midland oilman. Williams began the campaign 20 percentage points ahead in the polls, but lost
his lead because of series of political gaffes and misstatements. "During [Richards'] tenure in
office, the fiscally-conservative Democratic lieutenant governor, Bob Bullock, largely ran the
legislature, but with tight budgets, little happened legislatively except for the establishment of a
state lottery and continued building of prisons. Richards' legacy lay not in legislation but in her
fulfillment of campaign promises to make the state government reflect the diversity of the state's
people."
In 1994, George W. Bush defeated Richards's reelection bid. His reelection in 1998 confirmed
the Republican party's arrival as the majority party in Texas. Republicans held every one of the
twenty-nine offices elected by statewide vote.
By the 1990s, the Democratic party confronted problems in attracting Texas voters. At the
national and state levels, voters viewed the Democrats as the liberal party, whereas most white
Texans were conservative. Democrats became the party of inner-city and minority Texans,
voters whose turnout tends to be significantly lower than that of whites. Hispanic voters
overwhelmingly were loyal to the liberal wing of the Democratic party. As their numbers increase
in the new century, they may provide a base for a resurgent Democratic party.
Public Education
In the 1980s, Dallas billionaire Ross Perot chaired an educational reform committee whose
recommendations led to House Bill 72: higher teacher salaries, competency testing for teachers,
secondary teachers required to have degrees in academic subjects, and no-pass, no-play. In the
1990s, further reforms focused on school accountability based on student performance.
Poor school districts sued the state, arguing that funding half of school financing with local
property taxes insured gross inequities. In 1986, the state's wealthiest one hundred districts
spent $7, 233 per student, while the poorest one hundred districts spent $2,978 per student.
State courts ruled in favor of the poor districts and demanded that the Texas legislature reform
the school funding system. In 1993, the "Robin Hood" act took a share of the funding from the
richer districts and distributed the money among poorer districts. Nevertheless, in the new
century local property taxes continued to fund about half of school costs and therefore the
discrepancies remained.
Changes in the state's population complicated the school funding controversies. In 2001,
diversity characterized the Dallas school system: Hispanic 52 percent, African Americans 37 per
cent, Anglos 9 per cent, and Asian Americans 2 per cent. Other cities had similar diversity in their
population.
Universities
In recent years, Texas's universities became more female, older, and politically conservative.
Texas experimented with affirmative action to bring more diversity to the states universities.
However, in 1996 four white applicants sued the University of Texas Law School for giving
preference to minority applicants. In the case of Hopwood v. State of Texas, the court found in
favor of the white plaintiffs. Texas universities were then required to base admissions on a raceneutral basis. Nevertheless, minority enrollments did not permanently decline, in part because of
a 1997 law that provided automatic admission to Texas universities to students in the top 10
percent of their high school classes.
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In 1987, the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund, LULAC, and the G.I. Forum sued the state,
demanding the expansion of higher education institutions and programs in the Rio Grande Valley.
When a court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, the legislature created the South Texas Initiative to
finance higher education in the Valley. Although a higher court later overturned the decision, the
financing for South Texas higher education continued.
Traditionally, Texas higher education was funded by general tax revenues and the Permanent
University Fund (PUF). Beginning in 1931, the University of Texas received two-thirds of the PUF
and Texas A&M one-third. In 1984, voters ratified a constitutional amendment allowed other
members of the University of Texas and Texas A&M systems to share in PUF. In 1985, the
legislature established the Higher Education Assistance Fund (HEAF) to finance capital
improvements at campuses not a part of flagship systems.
Prisons
In 1972, Texas inmate David Ruiz sued the state, arguing that the conditions in the Huntsville
prison violated his civil rights. In the case of Ruiz v. Estelle, Federal District Judge William
Wayne Justice ordered the state to solve the problems of overcrowding and treatment of inmates.
Over the next two decades, Texas invested heavily in expanding and reforming the prison
system.
Water Dilemma
As the state entered the twenty-first century, Texas confronted a water dilemma. With no natural
lakes, Texas depended on underground aquifers. The rapidly expanding population and
economy threatened to deplete the groundwater resources.
Environment
Traditionally, Texans have resisted government requirements for clean air and water. In 1990,
Texas ranked worst among the fifty states in carbon dioxide emissions (air pollution). "Texas
released more ozone-producing chemicals into the air, produced more carcinogenic benzene and
vinyl chloride, and operated more hazardous-waste incinerators than any other state. In 1999,
Houston passed Los Angeles as the city with the nation's worst air quality." George Bush asked
Texas's industrial plants to voluntarily reduce pollution, but blocked legislation that would have
forced the plants to cut emissions. As a result, only about 15 percent of the factories reduced
pollution. "Texans' historic suspicions of government, combined with the desire for low taxes and
economic growth, have limited the effectiveness of environment-protection programs."
Taxes
Traditionally, Texans believed that low taxes led to economic growth. Texas raises revenue
through:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
a franchise tax on corporations,
"sin" taxes (tobacco and alcohol),
excise taxes (gasoline and motor-vehicle registration),
severance taxes on oil and natural gas,
local property taxes,
and since 1962 a general sales tax.
For Texans, the least favored method of raising revenue for state government was an income tax.
Reform efforts failed in the 1990s. As a result of the regressive tax structure, "in 1998 the
poorest 20 percent of Texans spent 16 percent of their income paying state and local taxes, while
the wealthiest 20 percent spent less than 4 percent of theirs."