Scary Billboards in California Not Stopping Moves to Texas and Other States

There is a big rivalry between Texas and California. Each state loves to battle each other over politics, business, entertainment, fast food, really anything that can be argued over. Over the last several years, California has been losing citizens by the thousands to other states in the union with most going to Texas. That mass exodus is speculated to have caused the need for billboards that have gone up in Los Angeles and San Francisco with a warning for those who want to move to Texas.

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A Billboard with a Strong Warning

A post in the r/LosAngeles community on Reddit shows a picture of a billboard that got both Texans and Californians talking and even debating about who put it up. The billboard is a warning to those who want to move to Texas that they'll basically get shot just like those in the shooting in Uvalde. It's a scare tactic that doesn't seem to be working. Californians are leaving the state more and more each year. They're coming to Texas but they're also going to other states in the union, too.

Who is behind putting these billboards up?

No one seems to know. The billboards are in San Francisco and Los Angeles but they contain no political affiliation. Some believe that the State of Texas put these up to deter those wanting to move from California. Some think that the State of California put them up to slow the mass exodus. Others think its a ploy by conservative Californians to scare liberal Californians from voting.

Reason for the Exodus from California

A lot of it has to do with the political climate of California which is basically the exact opposite of Texas. Another reason is because California is becoming an unaffordable state to live in with its ridiculously high property values and a high state tax. According to census data from 2022, about 102,000 Californians moved into Texas. That's down slightly from the 107,000 that moved to Texas in 2021.

Texas is Losing Folks, Too

Texas is seeing many people leaving the state as well. In 2022, 494,000 moved out of Texas. But the state gained a total of 668,000 people, more than making up for the loss. People leaving Texas are more likely to move to Oklahoma, Florida or Colorado. People moving into Texas are more likely to come from Florida, New York, Illinois, Louisiana and Colorado in addition to those from California (KETK).

Bottom Line

We're going to see more and more out-of-state license plates from people coming to Texas. There's good and bad to that but us natives will have to find a way to work with and live with our new neighbors. In the meantime, whoever decided it would be a good idea to put up those billboards might need to realize they just wasted their money.