Texas, Once a Star, Becomes a Drag on the U.S. Economy

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Since the collapse in oil prices, jobs are lost and growth stagnant; leaving Houston for Atlanta.HOUSTON—Texas helped lead the U.S. out of recession, thanks in part to the shale drilling revolution. But after more than two years of slumping oil prices, the state is now a sore spot for the national economy.

Petroleum prosperity helped usher in an economic boom in Texas, which added one out of every seven new American jobs between 2010 and 2014. But since the end of 2014, the state has lost more than 91,000 jobs in oil-and-gas extraction and mining-support activities, nearly half of the total national job losses in those categories.

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Some laid off energy workers are jumping ship to other industries and cities, and questioning whether they will return. Mohan Batlanki recently moved to Atlanta from Houston after he lost his job doing contract IT work for an oilfield services company. He had to take a 10% pay cut and walk away from a home with a pool that he was set to buy. Still, he’s happy he is no longer dependent on the boom-and-bust oil industry, even if he is currently living with his wife and five-year-old daughter in an apartment. “I don’t need to worry,” Mr. Batlanki said, adding that there is plenty of work in Atlanta.

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