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Texas

The Lone Star State, the behemoth of the Southwest, outpaces its neighbors in every way imaginable. The population topped 20 million people last year, far more than the next biggest state in the region. Building and growth has burgeoned at a frantic pace along the border with Mexico since NAFTA was ratified. But other more distant metropolitan areas such as Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston-Galveston and Austin-San Marcos have been mushrooming as well.

As one might expect, the service economy has fueled the state's growth. It is Texas' largest business segment and employs 2.7 million people. Non-farm jobs have increased about 34 percent since January 1990. Now, with the real-estate speculation and savings-and-loan bust in the late 1980s a fading memory, Texas is diversifying its economy more than ever.

The service sector's share of the state's $697 billion Gross State Product has increased from 14.6 percent in 1986 to 19.4 percent in 1999, adding 1.2 million service jobs since 1990 and giving the state the third largest such increase (behind California and Florida) in the nation.

Even Texas' manufacturing grew over the same period, from 14.5 percent of GSP to 15.3 percent.  SS

--Frederick Burger is a freelance writer and editor based in Anniston, Ala.