Chevron the latest in California’s years-long business exodus as companies flee the state

California continues to lose companies as businesses head to states with more welcoming regulatory environments, taking their employment, and contributions to the tax base and local economies with them. 

Oil giant Chevron is the latest to say it is jumping the California ship for Texas. The announcement came two weeks after Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he’s moving SpaceX and X to Texas. 

Chevron CEO Mike Wirth told the Wall Street Journal that California’s regulatory environment raises costs, which hurts consumers and discourages investment. 

“We think that’s not good for the economy in California and for consumers,” Wirth said in an interview,” Wirth told the Journal. 

David Blackmon, energy analyst and author of “Energy Absurdities,” told Just the News that some in California would welcome the company’s departure. “From an environmentalist standpoint, it's something to celebrate. The climate alarmists will be thrilled to death. From a business and economic standpoint for the state of California, it’s a disaster,” Blackmon said. 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation in July that bans schools from requiring parental notification when a child identifies as transgender. On X, Musk said the law was “final straw” and he’d be moving SpaceX from Hawthorne, California to Texas. He will also move X from San Francisco to Austin, according to the Associated Press.

Musk had moved Tesla from Palo Alto, California, to Austin in 2021. He then moved Boring Co., from Hawthorne to Austin in 2022. 

The two corporations are part of an exodus parade of businesses fleeing California’s taxes and regulations and headed to states they say will be more accommodating of their operations. According to a 2022 analysis by the Hoover Institution, 352 California-based companies moved their headquarters out of the state since 2018. 

Here’s a list of some of the more notable names of hundreds that have fled California for other states: 

Skin-care producer Neutrogena closed its Los Angeles offices in April as part of an effort to consolidate operations with its parent Kenvue Inc. in New Jersey. 

Marketing company Advantage Solutions moved its offices from Irvine, California to Missouri last year. Advantage Solutions CEO Dave Peacock told KMOX that the move would bring the company closer to its clients and customers. 

San Jose-based cybersecurity company McAfee moved its regional headquarters to Frisco, Texas. The company said the Texas city offered a “diverse cultural destination.” 

Charles Schwab moved its headquarters from San Francisco to North Texas in 2020, as part of a merger with TD Ameritrade. 

Oracle moved its headquarters from Silicon Valley to Austin, Texas, in 2020. The company said the move offered the company the best position for growth, and a flexible policy allowed employees to work where they want in most cases. 

Hewlett Packard Enterprise moved its headquarters from Silicon Valley to Houston in 2020. The company said it anticipated the move would produce long-term cost savings. 

Pabst Brewing closed its Los Angeles offices in 2020 to San Antonio, Texas, where it already had a presence. The company cited cost savings as one of the reasons for the move. Pabst is the seventh-largest beer company in the U.S. by production.

Before McAfee fled California, its rival NortonLifeLock, formerly Symantec, sold off its offices in Silicon Valley and moved its headquarters to Arizona in 2020.