You're overthinking it. Silicon Valley provides good models for building businesses. The state and local governments are masters of burning money and getting nothing from it.

As a taxpayer in California, I cannot track where most of my money goes. I can't ask my representative or either senator where it goes and get a straight answer. (Disclaimer: I still like Boxer.)

It's a little unfair to compare states, though. Texas, for instance, has lots of natural gas resources, oil production and refinement (especially along the gulf coast) among other things.

Take a look at these:

http://img.skitch.com/20090710-x3sceq4i2pq4hwaemawtd5afrd.re...

http://img.skitch.com/20090710-nsuaeu7ch7ayhci6fp5yemeb5x.re...

A lot of California land is reserved by the federal government. I think it's somewhere around 45%. In Texas, very little is reserved.