On April 1, 2021, the Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 7 on “Election Integrity.”
(p. B6) . . . , Texas is an important state for big business, with companies and their employees drawn in part by tax incentives and the promise of affordable real estate. Several Silicon Valley companies have moved to Texas or expanded their presence there in recent years.
Apple plans to open a $1 billion campus in Austin next year, and produces some of its high-end computers at a plant in the area.
In December [2020], Hewlett Packard Enterprise announced that it would move its headquarters from California to the Houston area, while the software company Oracle said it would take its headquarters to Austin. And last month, Elon Musk issued a plea on Twitter for engineers to move to Texas and take jobs at SpaceX, his aerospace company.
Mr. Musk’s other companies, Tesla and the Boring Company, have also expanded their presences in the state in recent months.
None of those companies have so far voiced opposition to the Texas legislation. And at least for now, there is little indication that the growing outcry from big business is changing Republicans’ priorities.
For the full story, see:
(Note: ellipsis, and bracketed year, added.)
(Note: the online version of the story has the date April 12, 2021, and has the title “Defying Republicans, Big Companies Keep the Focus on Voting Rights.”)