It may be hard for some to specifically place how much credit for the boon in Texas-based technology business should be given to outgoing Texas Governor Rick Perry, but it is clear that he has been a very public champion for promoting Texas as a technology hub for years now.  Rick Perry is the longest-serving governor in Texas history and he announced this week that he will be leaving the office after the 2014 elections.

This record-setting 14 year tenure was marked by a nurtured period of prosperous business growth – fueled by a sustained surge in energy prices and a business-friendly economic climate.

Quite recently Perry has been traveling to other states, openly courting companies to pack up and move down to Texas.  Texas companies find lower taxes across the board, and there is also no state income tax for the employees that make the move.  It doesn’t end there, compared to most major technology hubs, the real estate is considerably cheaper, the price of utilities is low, and all the infrastructure you need can be found easily.

With a ready tech workforce and a thriving university system that prepares them, the culture of technology has been coming along for years now.  Many companies set up out of Austin, while Dallas and Houston are also on that list.

Through it all, Perry has been front and center in the flow of technology business.  Back in April, he participated in the announcement of Google Fiber when it was revealed that the service would be coming to Austin.  Austin has been coined by some as the “Silicon Valley of the East”, and the arrival of Google Fiber to the old west town was a telling indicator of its importance to the technology scene and a perfect place to do the business required to make the service a reality.

Among the list of considerations for Google Fiber is the ability to do business easily.  Meaning having the ability and will to organize communities and business to get a solution implemented that will incorporate street access, brokering contracts, favorable tax situations, and general business conditions to get the fiber installed.
 

At the time, Perry said: “With the installment of Google Fiber, the case can be made that Texas is one step closer to becoming the nation’s next technological hub, inviting some of the boldest and most creative visionaries to call Austin their home,” Gov. Perry said. “This announcement plays right into the Texas tradition of freedom, enterprise and innovation, proving that companies and their community’s connection with the internet has never been more essential to operate.”

Perry also helped establish the state’s Emerging Technology Fund, an effort by the state to encourage technology innovation and business through awards, sponsoring research, and aiding business.  In all, it will be interesting to watch what the next phase is, and whether his eventual successor will remain committed to attracting technology companies and exactly how that is done.

Though many states do a good deal of nurturing and maintaining their technology business base, I don’t personally recall a governor of a state campaigning as openly across the union to get companies and people to give their state a try.  For that reason the announcement of his leaving office should register in the tech world as the end of a fascinating technology push that may not be seen again.